Gasperini claims that his remark about the “worst penalty taker” was never intended to offend Lookman

Atalanta coach Gian Piero Gasperini said on Saturday that he never intended to offend Ademola Lookman when he referred to the striker as “one of the worst penalty takers he has ever seen” during their Champions League defeat at home against Club Brugge.

Club Brugge won the second leg of their playoff encounter against Atalanta 3-1.

After winning 5-2 overall, the Belgian squad moved on to the round of 16.

Lookman, the star of Atalanta’s Europa League-winning campaign the year before, gave the Italian club a goal back when they were behind 3-0.

The Nigerian, who has scored 15 goals this season, Gasperini said Lookman was not anticipated to take the saved penalty since offensive midfielder Charles De Ketelaere and striker Mateo Retegui were on the field.

In an Instagram post, Lookman described Gasperini’s comments that specifically targeted him as “deeply disrespectful” and hurtful.

At a news conference on Saturday, Gasperini dismissed the scuffle, drawing comparisons to a past incident in which Lorenzo Lucca converted a penalty during Udinese’s 1-0 Serie A victory against Lecce on Friday, despite not being the selected taker.

Everything that followed was impacted in a remarkable way. “I did not intend for my sentence to be offensive,” Gasperini stated.

“We had a potentially dramatic situation yesterday in Udinese-Lecce, but fortunately, some people let it go.

A powerful player like Lookman should have gestured to De Ketelaere, saying, “Come on, keep the ball, put it in.”

“He may develop the skill to take penalties, which would be an extra way to score goals. It has never affected the club; I always address the entire team.

“He was offended, and I didn’t want to cause offense.”

The relegation-threatened Empoli will host Atalanta, who now sit third in Serie A with 51 points from 25 games, on Sunday.

“Empoli has been playing really well in every game I’ve watched, and they’re coming off a run of tough results,” Gasperini remarked.

“They are playing for salvation and are a good team with good play and a great coach.”

Remembering the first game, I anticipate a challenging, well-balanced duel.

“We must give it our all; we have only one objective.”