20-time Italian Serie A winners Inter Milan are set to send in their final offer for Super Eagles and Atalanta forward Ademola Lookman, Soccernet.ng reports.
The 27-year-old also wants to join the 2025 UEFA Champions League finalists, but Atalanta are making it hard for a deal to be reached.
Inter initially asked for a loan with a buy option, before tabling a €40m bid for the CAF Player of the Year, all of which were met with a decline by La Dea, who are holding out for around €50m.
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The Nigerian forward submitted a formal transfer request this week, bringing to light months of tension between him and the club.
He also took to his social media platforms to air his displeasure about how he’s been treated by the club.
However, Atalanta maintains that the ‘gentleman’s agreement’ reached with Ademola Lookman last season was specifically centred around a transfer to a foreign club and not a domestic rival like Inter Milan.
Inter Milan set for final Lookman offer
Lookman has decided to abscond from training in an attempt to force a move to the San Siro, and Inter are set to match Atalanta’s asking fee.
According to Gazzetta dello Sport via FCInterNews, the Serie A runners-up are ready to bring in the former Leicester City forward in the hopes of completing their fifth summer signing.
The San Siro giants are willing to match Atalanta’s €50m asking price to finally bring an end to this long-drawn-out transfer saga, and will submit an official bid in the coming days.
Inter’s third proposal will likely include several bonuses to meet the desired price, but Atalanta could turn the offer down based on the premise that they only want to sell the 2024 CAF Player of the Year to foreign clubs.
Should Atalanta accept Inter’s final offer?
Lookman’s contract at the Gewiss Stadium in Bergamo runs until the summer of 2027, but if they don’t let him off their books this summer, they’ll have an unhappy player on their hands.
Additionally, La Dea might not have the opportunity to recoup the amount they are asking for the Super Eagles star if he doesn’t leave this summer.
As footballers age, their value in the transfer market dwindles slightly. From the perspective of the club, there’s simply no assurance that Lookman will keep churning out impressive numbers every season, although they’d hope so.
Selling Lookman to Inter is likened to Atalanta handing a weapon to their enemies in war, and would mean them turning back on the supposed agreement they had with the forward, but it’ll be best if both parties part ways this summer.
A simple cop-out for the 2024 UEFA Europa League winners would be to include a clause that Lookman doesn’t feature whenever Atalanta play against Inter Milan.