Italian Media: Roma monitoring Lookman, no longer a starter at Atletico

According to today's La Repubblica, Roma is closely monitoring Lookman's situation. The forward, who plays for Atletico Madrid, is no longer considered an undisputed starter by Simeone. This season, the Nigerian has made 15 appearances across all competitions, contributing 2 goals and 1 assist in LaLiga and the Champions League: he started 9 times in the league, but never in European competition.

In recent matches, he has become a substitute for Álex Baena, who has been promoted to the preferred option; against Barcelona, Lookman sat on the bench for the entire game for the first time this season. It should be noted that Simeone has not excluded him from his plans and still considers him an important asset, but Lookman no longer seems irreplaceable. What is certain is that his influence is not as strong as last season: since joining from Atalanta in January, he scored 9 goals in 24 games until May.

It's not time to sound the alarm yet, but Roma is watching, as the former Atalanta forward is indeed on sporting director D'Amico's list. The reason is his familiarity with Italian football and his time playing under Gasperini, where there were more than a few heated discussions, but he also showed significant growth. In Bergamo, he contributed 55 goals and 27 assists in 137 appearances, including that magical night in Dublin against Bayer Leverkusen, which brought Atalanta their historic Europa League title.

If the former RB Leipzig player has now become a top-class player, it is largely thanks to Roma's current coach, who is considering using him to strengthen his attack. As La Repubblica stated today, there are currently no transfer requests or fan protests against him, but if his playing time continues to be limited, Lookman will re-evaluate his situation and communicate with the club.

It is clear that Atletico Madrid cannot let go of both forwards in January: another player with market value is Sørloth, the Norwegian forward born in 1995, who is a target for Juventus and is valued at approximately 25 to 30 million euros. Atletico Madrid will only let one of them go if the conditions are right and a replacement is found. Lookman's transfer fee last January was 35 million euros plus 5 million euros in bonuses, and his annual salary is approximately 6 million euros before tax plus bonuses, with a contract until 2030.