Ademola Lookman failed to turn up at Atalanta's base to join his teammates for a second consecutive day on Tuesday, failing to comply with a formal call-up by the Bergamo club, after it refused to sell the Nigeria forward to Inter last week.
    The 27-year-old removed any reference to the club on his Instagram account at the weekend and said Atalanta had broken promises to him by blocking the transfer.
    Atalanta CEO Luca Percassi said Monday that the club was not unwilling to let him leave, but did not want him to go to a rival club in Italy.
    "Lookman had asked us to be sold last year when we were faced with a 20 million offer from Paris Saint-Germain," Percassi said.
    "We are a credible club made up of decent people.
    "We promised to sell him in this market session, but under two conditions.
    "One of the conditions was that he would never be seen in a shirt other than Atalanta's in Italy".
    Lookman, who had reportedly agreed personal terms with Inter, joined Atalanta in 2022 and was named African Footballer of the Year in 2024 after helping them win the Europa League last year, scoring a hat-trick in the 3-0 victory over Bayer Leverkusen in the final.
    He also helped Atalanta to finish third in Serie A last season to qualify for the Champions League.

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