One of the stand-out players in this Nigeria squad is Atalanta’s Ademola Lookman.
He backed up his Europa League final hat-trick at the end of the 2023-24 season with a brilliant campaign last term — he scored 20 goals and put on seven assists across Serie A and the Champions League.
Amid transfer interest linking him with a move away in the summer, he has returned to action in Serie A and has scored twice in 11 matches in 2025-26. He continues to be a key creative spark for Nigeria.
As defender and national team mate Calvin Bassey told The Athletic in 2024 …
💬 “Mola’s sharp, man … He is the star boy. He is a baller, but take away his goals and look at the work rate. He tracks back, same as all of our attackers, and that’s the foundation which sets him apart from other players on different teams.
“I’ve been lucky we’ve been on the same team (in training). He’s hard, he is tricky. He is not going to let you go easy. It’s a good challenge. It keeps me and all of us on our toes.”
