Sport
Lookman Claims Atalanta Have Their Heads Held High Despite Real Madrid Loss
Ademola Lookman has praised his Atalanta side for their strong showing against Real Madrid, despite suffering a narrow 3-2 loss in their UEFA Champions League clash at the Gewiss Stadium on Tuesday night.
The match marked the first defeat for the reigning UEFA Europa League champions in the Champions League this season, but Atalanta’s performance sent a clear message: they are capable of competing with Europe’s best.
Lookman, who scored Atalanta’s second goal in the intense encounter, was named Man of the Match for his standout contribution.
His goal helped keep the pressure on the Spanish giants, but despite their efforts, Atalanta could not find an equalizer after a dramatic late goal from Real Madrid sealed the victory.
Reflecting on the match, Lookman shared his thoughts with UEFA.com, emphasizing the team’s pride in their performance, despite the result.
“It was a tough game, and Real Madrid took their chances when they had them,” Lookman said.
“We knew going into the match that it would be a hard-fought contest, and although we were unlucky not to come away with a win, we have our heads held high.”
Although disappointed with the final scoreline, the Nigerian forward expressed the belief that Atalanta had shown enough to demonstrate their ability to compete at the highest level.
“We are disappointed with the result because we felt we could have done more,” Lookman continued, “but there’s also a lot of pride in how we played.
We showed that we can go toe-to-toe with the best.”
Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim responded to Gary Neville’s criticism following his team’s goalless draw with Manchester City at Old Trafford on Sunday.
Although Manchester City dominated possession, neither side seemed particularly eager to claim all three points, resulting in a disappointing 0-0 draw.
Neville, a Manchester United legend, expressed his frustration with the performance, criticizing both teams for their lack of spontaneity and overemphasis on tactical shape. On Sky Sports, he commented, “They’re all so obsessed with shape… nothing off-the-cuff is happening in lots of games… This has got to stop…”
When asked about Neville’s remarks in a post-match interview, Amorim gave a calm response, saying, “I understand. I understand that Gary Neville is critical of everything!”
The draw left Manchester City in fifth place, still behind Chelsea, who also played out a 0-0 draw with Brentford earlier in the day. Meanwhile, United remained in 13th place, with 38 points from 31 matches, with just seven games remaining in the season.
Former English Referee Mike Dean reacts to Arsenal’s penalty in the Premier league match against Everton.
Speaking to the press, the former referee shares his thoughts on the penalty given to Arsenal.
“There’s a bit of contact outside and there’s a little bit of contact inside. I think it’s a soft one. It’s probably not wrong, but it’s a soft one.”
“I don’t know why Lewis-Skelly doesn’t go to attack it… Harrison gets the wrong side of him. I think this is awfully soft, but it’s gone to VAR…
“I can see why it was given in real time. But watching it again, there’s hardly a touch.”
Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca has explained his decision to leave Cole Palmer and Nicolas Jackson out of the starting lineup for Sunday’s match against Brentford. Fans were surprised when the team sheets were released and both players were named on the bench.
Maresca made several changes from the side that won 1-0 against Tottenham on Thursday, including leaving out Pedro Neto, Marc Cucurella, and Levi Colwill, likely to manage player fatigue with the upcoming Conference League quarter-final first leg against Legia Warszawa in mind.
“It’s part of the game plan. I believe the players starting today are the right choices for this match,” Maresca said in his post-match comments to the BBC.
Chelsea is aiming for a win to boost their chances of climbing back into the top four spots in the league.
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