Fulham manager Scott Parker has heaped praise on Ademola Lookman after the club’s new recruit impressed on his Premier League debut against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Sunday.
Parker lit up the Molineux after replacing Ivan Cavaleiro in the 67th minute.
The 22-year-old was a thorn in the flesh of the home team’s defenders causing problems with his dribbling runs and trickery on the ball.
“Ademola looked another level up,” Parker told the club’s website.
“He has big quality, but we knew that at the start of the window. He was my main one I wanted in.
“I was calling for him and you’ve seen in such a short space of time at Brentford and now today – he has unbelievable quality and he’ll be a big plus for us this year.”
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COMMENTS
After watching Lookman’s debut today against Wolves, I can’t help but agree with Parker. Lookman came in, and breathed life into a dead Fulham attack. His dribbling, passing, and all round positive play was top notch. Is it too late for Rohr to extend an invitation to Lookman for the upcoming friendlies? I always thought the guy was special. He showed it today again, and if he continues like this, Northgate might get interested. To avoid another Saka show, I think Rohr needs to take a long, hard look at Lookman.
@ Pompeii Ademola Lookman is a bomb. You only need 2 minutes handling of the ball to know a pure talent. Ademola is one.
Lookman put on quite a show today. If he can keep this level up consistently, we’ve got a bomb of a player on our hands, as you said Glory. He will most definitely add some serious value to the SE if given a chance. The English commentator called him INCREDIBLE, MAGNIFICENT. We better cap this guy as soon as possible.
Guys let’s be fair here lookman needs FIFA clearance before he can play for Nigeria,if am writing someone should correct me pls
Lookman has already filed for an international switch from England to Nigeria waiting for FIFA approval so, Southgate’s hand is completely off on this special1.
Lookman is for nigeria and Nigeria is for Lookman. I just hope Fulham starts picking viable points soonest…
I hope Aina’s full debut was nice too.
…@Drey are you in hiding? Almost everyone is singing lookman’s praises after just two league appearances. Sometime early or late last year, you gave the guy a big stick because a coach who does not believe much in his abilities was at the reins at RB Leipzig. I told you then that a player often needs to feel the confidence of his coach to perform. Make we no the quick write off players as football has a lot of psychological battle other than the physical one that we often assume is a given for players to show at all times… Whoever thought Tiger Woods will be so psychological messed up after all his issues that he begins to doubt himself? Let’s be slow to throw players under the bus…
Pls what was the comment I made…? What was the big sticks….?
The last time I checked, early last year, Ademola Lookman was firing on all cylinders with Leipzig, So I dont know why I would have given him any stick. This time last year, he had just made his loan move permanent and was getting game time, so I really dont know how i would have given him stick. He is one kid I have always watched out for and even primed to move away from leipzig in other to make progress with his career….even recently before he eventually moved, I still opined that he has to leave to save his career. Dont create any storms in a tea cup to score points, I dont know if it was your imagination that was playing with you….but I have never given lookman any sticks…you can do well to copy/paste where I gave him the sticks in my comment. Anybody who also remembers Dr Drey giving lookman big sticks at anytime can also do well to assist JimmyBall to copy/paste wherever I ever game Lookman big sticks. Maybe its someone else’s name you wanted to mention, but mine came to your mind due to your burning yearning to score points against me.
Ademola Lookman: A Loyalty to Fatherland
editorFebruary 1, 2020 1:12 Am
President of Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Amaju Pinnick’s style of recruiting players for the national team, which he termed ‘VIP scouting’ seems to have scored another goal, after England junior international of Nigerian descent, Ademola Lookman switched his international allegiance to his fatherland
Leipzig star Ademola Lookman has switched his international allegiance from England to Nigeria, in spite of the 22-year-old forward, who was born in England to parents of Nigerian descent having played for the European country’s youth national teams.
The news was revealed by Nigeria’s technical assistant Tunde Adelakun when speaking to Opera News, “Lookman has applied for the switch and all the documents are in order,” Adelakun said.
“It’s a positive step forward when made his commitment to Nigeria and we are just waiting for a FIFA clearance.
“Once the go-ahead is sorted, it will be up to Coach Gernot Rohr to decide if his club performance would earn him a call-up.”
Lookman helped England win 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup in the Korea Republic and was also part of the England team which won the 2017 Toulon U-20 Four Nations tournament in France.
In the summer, Lookman set a new Nigerian transfer record when he moved to RB Leipzig from Everton for a move worth up to £22.5m
German Bundesliga club, RB Leipzig broke the Nigerian transfer record for Lookman after Everton agree to sell the winger for a fee said to be worth up to £22.5m.
Before then, the costliest transfer involving a Nigerian winger is Ahmed Musa’s switch to Leicester City in the summer of 2016, with CSKA Moscow pocketing £16.6 million from the deal, meaning Lookman’s return to RB Leipzig surpassed that fees.
The 21-year-old already played for RB Leipzig in the second half of the 2017-18 season and was directly involved in nine goals-five goals and four assists from 11 appearances in the German top flight under the stewardship of now-Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl.
Since then, RB Leipzig have held an interest in Lookman, and after an underwhelming campaign where Marco Silva used him sparingly, he is now set for a permanent exit.
He saw his first-team opportunities limited upon his return to Everton last season, making only three Premier League starts and played 18 games off the bench.
Things have not worked out as well as he might have hoped since making the January 2017 move from Charlton Athletic to Everton. Lookman has only managed 48 outings – with four goals and two assists – and has mainly been a bench player.
But the former England U-21 international is set to continue his career in Germany. He thrived in the Bundesliga previously and will hope to follow the likes of Jadon Sancho and Reiss Nelson, who both enjoyed success in the German top-flight.
In 2017, Pep Guardiola was dented with the biggest loss in his coaching career by Everton, a victory that was orchestrated by the Nigerian-born England U-21 and his performance enjoyed a lot of media attention.
Lookman came on in stoppage time of Everton’s 4-0 win over Manchester City to score the fourth goal after capitalizing on a mistake from John Stones despite being on the pitch for just a matter of minutes.
The then £7.5m signing from Charlton was delighted with his performance and he said afterward: “The gaffer just said ‘play behind Rom. I was lucky to anticipate the ball and put it in the back of the net. My first premier league goal, this is my chance to score it – and I took it well.”
With his goal-scoring debut for Everton, the then19-year-old Lookman dreamt playing beyond the Toffees.
“One day I want to win trophies. Of course, I want to play at the highest level – whether in England or Spain, I want to be at the top. You have teams like Barcelona and Real Madrid. As a kid, I dreamed of playing for one of those teams,” he said.
When Everton poached Leicester’s head of recruitment Steve Walsh in the summer, it was easy to understand the logic. The 52-year-old’s reputation had hit new heights after he unearthed Jamie Vardy, Riyad Mahrez and N’Golo Kante to inspire Leicester’s title triumph, and Everton were eager to apply the same expertise at Goodison Park.
The Walsh was quick to identify the talent in Lookman as the Nigerian arrived from Charlton as a little-known teenager with no Premier League experience. But at £10m, he was the most expensive ever signing from League One.
Like many of Walsh’s best signings, Lookman has had an unconventional route to the top. The jump from League One to Premier League has drawn parallels with Dele Alli’s move to Tottenham, but while Alli was on MK Dons’ books from the age of 11, Lookman did not set foot in a professional academy until he was 16.
Born as Ademola Olajade Lookman October 20, 1997, in Wandsworth, London to Nigerian parents, he attended St. Thomas the Apostle College in Peckham where he achieved three As and five As at GCSE.
Lookman signed for Everton on January 5, 2017, for a fee of £7.5m rising to £11m on a four-and-a-half-year contract and made his debut for the club 10 days later. He scored on his debut.
He received his first international call up on May 16, 2016, being named in the England U-19 squad for a doubleheader against Mexico. He was subsequently named in England squad for the European U-19 Championships the same summer.
By the virtue of the above report, is it possible for a player to file for a change of an association twice,if the answer is NO!then, what’s the cause of fear about Lookman playing for England’s national team by those aforementioned comments above?
… @Drey. If I remember correctly, you mentioned then that he was not doing enough to fit into the style and plans of Nagelsmann. You also went ahead to list about five other black players who the coach was selecting and that it was not a case of Nagelsmann favoring players he trust above him. I argue then that sometimes if a coach does not like your face (does not trust a player’s abilities), no matter what that player does right, he won’t play. If we give Ademola Lookman and Timo Werner same opportunities and trust, you will be surprised Lookman may even edge him. I went ahead then to say it’s natural for local talents to be more tolerated and encouraged ahead of foreigners and above all, the black African often has to be 3times better than a local lad to play ahead of him… A coach who was there before Nagelsmann at RB Leipzig trusted Lookman and it showed in his short stint before he was acquired permanently. But for Nagelsmann, he Lookman did not fit style and plans, and often that’s how most Coaches who know too much often shoot most decent players’ confidence down and they begin to doubt themselves. What happened to Lookman at RB Leipzig was a lack of trust on the part of the Coach… In football, once a player is good he is good, there could be a dip in form but the innate abilities will never be lost!
Hahahahahaha….you definitely chat on CSN even while sleeping. Which 5 black players did I list that the coach was selecting….LMAO… Infact how many black players have even been in the first team of RB Leipzig since Nagelsmsan took over that I was able to list 5 who were playing ahead of Lookman….LMAO.
I can’t EVER recall you and I discussing the issue of lookman that extensively….I’ve not even discussed lookman that much here on CSN as I’ve never really seen him as one of our own yet until his switch comes through. Lolz. My exchanges with you on this forum as been more of late (the last 6-8 months) not early or late last year….and the have been centred around the likes of Musa Muhammed, Nwakali, Onazi, Alampasu and other fringe players whom you have always claimed are better than those who are currently in the SE and always look for one excuse or the other to backup their career downturn. Me and you…discuss lookman….LMAO. Mr man pls wake up.
If I were you, I will just go and copy/paste the said comment so that everyone will see…Lolz. That will always end the matter once and for all. It’s very easy….there’s a search button up there, just type lookman and it will give you all the news threads about lookman. Pls do me the favour of searching out the comment and paste it here….Lolz.
Eish…na wah o. People chat for CSN sotay dem even chat for dream set. lolz
Lookman na baller.
Super Eagles hopeful Ademola Lookman, eager to lay his nightmare moments at Leipzig to rest, put in a performance yesterday for Fulham that was as compelling as it fascinating to watch.
It will not be a stretch to go as far as saying Lookman altered the complexion of the game when he came on with 23 minutes to go with his convincing take-ons, incisive passes, eloquent hold-up play and pristine interactions which were all laced in vigor, vitality and zest.
If he goes on like this, England will definitely look to have Lookman back, no doubt about it.
As of the time of typing this, I am still watching the highlights of the match with the commentor showering encomiums on Lookman’ performances stating that he had been colossal for Fulham since coming on.
Lookman’s great close controls, ability to wriggle out of tight spaces, stubborness to stand his ground and shrug off multiple attempts at wresting the ball off him were all on display against a resolute Wolves yesterday and all these outputs were not lost to the commentator (who was clearly enjoying commenting on such a precocious talent).
As a neutral football observer, I fail to spot any negatives from Lookman’s game against Wolves. If I am hard pressed to come up with a negative for sake of ‘balanced reporting’ I will say perhaps he should dribble less.
But even at that Lookman still had control of himself when he failed to take on his man leading to helping Fulham retain possession and alternatively giving a simple pass to nearest team mate (as a viable plan’ b’ to the failure of his take-on).
That is what Eberechi Eze needs to add to his game as he tends to lose the ball more often when his dribble attempts fail.
Lookman was powerful, precise and prestine every time he pushed, probed and pressed into dangerous areas for the time he was on the pitch.
Whilst I appreciate that Nigeria has a lot of wingers at the moment, it is my firm belief – based on what I just saw – that there is a place for Lookman in the Super Eagles.
The only caveat to this is if Lookman fails to sustain the sort of performances he produced against Wolves yesterday. In football, you are as good as your last game (which I know is a harsh reality).
But I repeat, replication of the sort of showings displayed by Lookman yesterday should lead to a Super Eagles invitation.
If not, Nigeria might witness losing yet again another rathe-ripe talent to England. And it will be such a pity.
@deo this is the first time we see eye to eye Good one Bro!!!. But unfortunately I fear we will loose him because Rohr is Punk!!!! Without sense and he will rather keep inviting Musa what a damn Shame!!!!.
As he as invited Onuachu because of Covid scares for Napoli and Osimhen he should use this chance and give Lookman Ademola the nod PERIOD!!
Well it will be another case another lost Cause, Rohr will keep inviting Ahmed Musa and Moses Simon until Ademola Lookman decides to switch Allegiance back to England as he has not featured for Nigeria yet. Rohr will not Invite this boy but England will watch and see after 3 or so games. If This Rohr has a brain he should Drop Musa NOW and give Ademola Lookman the NOD NOW!!!!!!!..
Well it will be another case another lost Cause, Rohr will keep inviting Ahmed Musa and Moses Simon until Ademola Lookman decides to switch Allegiance back to England as he has not featured for Nigeria yet. Rohr will not Invite this boy but England will watch and see after 3 or so games. If This Rohr has a brain he should Drop Musa NOW and give Ademola Lookman the NOD NOW!!!!!!!.. It is a Tactic that any coach with sense will be able to decipher.
GERNOT ROHR A WORD IS ENOUGH FOR THE WISE. WE Have Lost Saka let us not loose Lookman and EZE
Calm down change of nationality can only be filled once that’s it! Once he switches having played for England competitively at under21 level no going back on Nigeria!#fact
@ugo iwunze the process of changing nationality has not been completed now, Lookman cannot play for Nigeria now, how can Rohr invite him? so that FIFA should sanction Nigeria.
belove why always trying to insult the Coach? You read from people current with Lookman’s saga that he has not be cleared to play for Nigeria, until that is effected he Rohr can´t invite him. Please for once lets praise the man for good Job. For SAKA to me is not an issue; Nigeria have more than enough better substitutes soon to be discover. If you love Saka pray for him because interpreting and learning from history; he will soon be forgotten by England. Where is Dele Alli, Tomori,?