Super Eagles striker Ademola Lookman was omitted from Atalanta’s squad for their Serie A opener against Lecce amid speculation about a possible move to Paris Saint-Germain.
Lookman, who achieved legendary status with Atalanta in May by scoring a stunning hat-trick in the Europa League final against Bayer Leverkusen, securing the club’s first major trophy since 1963, was absent for the team’s league debut.
Reports suggest that Lookman’s representatives have informed Atalanta of PSG’s interest, as the club navigates a busy summer transfer window.
Lookman, turning 27 in October, remains a key figure after his impressive performance last season.
Atalanta purchased Lookman from RB Leipzig in 2022 for €9.35m plus bonuses.
Born and raised in London, he scored a total 32 goals with 18 assists in 79 competitive appearances for Atalanta, most recently the UEFA Super Cup defeat to Real Madrid on Wednesday.
Lookman, who has played 23 times for Nigeria, scored three goals in his country’s run to African Cup of Nations final over January and February.
Meanwhile, Serbia midfielder Lazar Samardzic his arrived in Bergamo for his medical ahead of a 20 million-euro ($22 million) move to Atalanta from Udinese, as another of last season’s heroes Teun Koopmeiners agitates for a move to Juventus.
Koopmeiners was also not named in the 23-man squad for the Lecce match but Atalanta have as yet refused to agree terms with Juve who are rebuilding their team for new coach Thiago Motta.
Atalanta lost centre-forward Gianluca Scamacca to a serious knee injury earlier this month, causing them to sign his Italy teammate Mateo Retegui from Genoa.