Former Atalanta midfielder Massimo Donati believes Ademola Lookman’s remarkable transformation lies in the forward’s newfound understanding of his abilities, Soccernet.ng reports.

After different underwhelming spells in England and Germany, Lookman arrived in Italy in 2022 to join Atalanta from RB Leipzig in a deal slightly less than €10 million.

The Nigerian international has been nothing short of sensational for Atalanta, helping himself to back-to-back Player of the Season awards at the club.

Atalanta are the current Europa League champions, with Lookman playing a key part in that triumph by netting a sensational hat-trick in the final match against Bayer Leverkusen.

The former Everton and Fulham star has carried his excellent form into the 2024/25 season to inspire Atalanta to the top of the Italian Serie A table.

Following Lookman’s contributions to Atalanta, the Super Eagles forward was on Monday named the new Africa Footballer of the Year.

And former Celtic Glasgow midfielder Donati has hailed Lookman’s transformation, insisting the winger’s strength is in his awareness of his abilities.

“Lookman is an incredible player,” Donati told Gazzetta as per Football-Italia.

“The biggest improvement he’s made is to gain awareness of his strengths. Once you realise that, nobody can stop you.”

Lookman is expected to be benched as the Atalanta Serie A table leaders face Cesena in the Coppa Italia Round of 16 today.

Fiorentina fullback Michael Kayode has been named the Best Italian Talent at the 2024 Golden Boy Awards, a recognition of his stellar season with the Serie A club.

The 20-year-old, born in Bergamo to Nigerian parents, has had a remarkable journey in football. Starting his youth career at Juventus, Kayode spent seven years at the academy before moving on in 2018.

In 2021, he joined Fiorentina after a stint in Serie D and quickly made his mark in their youth setup. His contributions helped the team win the Coppa Italia Primavera and the Supercoppa Italiana Primavera.

Kayode’s big break came in August 2023 when he made his Serie A debut in Fiorentina’s 4–1 victory over Genoa. By the season’s end, he had established himself as a vital part of the first team, featuring prominently in Serie A and during Fiorentina’s run to the UEFA Conference League final.

Internationally, Kayode has been equally impressive. A key figure in Italy’s youth squads, he played a vital role in the UEFA European U-19 Championship final in July 2023, leading Italy to victory over Portugal. He further solidified his rising profile with his U-21 debut on 17 October 2023, helping Italy secure a 2–0 win against Norway in Bolzano.

Profile in view

Michael Olabode Kayode is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a right-back for Serie A club Fiorentina. He was born in Italy, Kayode is of Nigerian descent.

The son of Yoruba parents started his youth career at Juventus, where he remained for seven years until 2018. He played the 2020–21 season with Serie D club Gozzano, with which he scored two goals and two assists in 34 matches, and gained promotion to Serie C.

Former Italian Serie A champions Juventus could sign Super Eagles striker Victor Osimhen if Dusan Vlahovic decides to leave them next summer, according to soccernet.

Osimhen has been impressive for Galatasaray since his season-long loan transfer from Napoli last summer. The Nigerian striker had impressed at Napoli in the previous three seasons, and he was expected to move to a bigger club in one of the top five leagues.

However, he did not get the move. And after getting alienated from Napoli’s squad, he had to settle for a loan move to Turkish giants Galatasaray.

Osimhen has produced eight goals and four assists in nine games for Galatasaray. And this has fueled rumors that the club want to sign him permanently. However, it is unlikely, due to the toll it would take on Galatasaray’s finances.

Meanwhile, Osimhen would be more keen on the transfer to a club in one of the top five leagues in Europe.

According to a recent report from Nicolo Schira, the Nigerian striker may just return to the Serie A next summer. This is as Juventus are monitoring his situation with Napoli. The Old Lady may lose Vlahovic, as he has refused to pen an extension even though his current deal expires in 2026.

If the Serbian leaves, Juventus will move to sign Osimhen from Napoli as he is a proven striker in the Serie A. The Old Lady have a penchant for singing players from other Serie A clubs. And if Osimhen okays the deal, Juventus can pull it off.