Lookman’s historic hat-trick fires Atalanta to Europa triumph over Leverkusen
The Bundesliga winners' 51-match unbeaten streak in all competitions came to an abrupt end when Atalanta shocked Bayer Leverkusen 3-0, with Nigerian attacker Ademola Lookman becoming the first player to score a hat-trick in a UEFA Europa League final.
Atalanta defeated the recently crowned German champions in the 2023–24 final on Wednesday at the Dublin Arena, securing their first-ever UEFA Europa League title and their first major title win since 1963.
And it was Lookman, who came into the box entirely unmarked and fired a clinical first-time strike past Matěj Kovář after some delightful link-up play involving Teun Koopmeiners and Davide Zappacosta, who gave the Serie A side the lead in the 12th minute.
Even the Leverkusen players were impressed by the brilliant finish the Nigerian winger produced to add to the score. Within 26 minutes of the game, he had completed his brace after receiving the ball, dribbling past Granit Xhaka and nutmegging the former Arsenal player before firing an incredible long-range shot from the edge of the box that went straight into the net.
Florian Wirtz's pass to Álex Grimaldo gave Leverkusen a surprising lifeline, but the Spaniard missed the lob and fired straight at Juan Musso, who was well outside the goal.
During the first forty-five minutes, Alonso's team was unable to get going, and in Dublin, the tactically savvy Gian Piero Gasperini had seen his strategy work.
After the interval, Die Werkself came out firing, and Jeremie Frimpong gave the Bergamo team a scare when he struck a left-footed volley over the bar with Amine Adli's ball across the box.
The Germans' season needed another comeback badly, but they lacked their customary advantage against La Dea, who had their cards well marked.
After being set up by Gianluca Scamacca, Lookman ultimately put an end to any dreams that Leverkusen would find a way back into this match with a fierce angled finish from the left side.
With his third goal of the match in the 75th minute, the Nigerian made history by being the first player to achieve a hat-trick in the competition final. Jupp Heynckes, who scored a hat-trick for Mönchengladbach in their first-leg victory at home against Twente in the 1975 UEFA Cup final, is the only player to have come close. But back then, it was a two-leg final instead of the one-leg format used by the European governing body, UEFA.
Before adding the historic third goal, Lookman's first-half brace had made him the first African to score two goals in a major European competition final.
With the hat-trick, the 26-year-old's season total now stands at 15 goals and 8 assists across all competitions, including five goals in the Europa League.
Victor Boniface and Nathan Tella, two Nigerian players on the team, helped Leverkusen win the Bundesliga with a 34-game winning streak. However, their 51-game winning streak came to an end in their 52nd game against the Lookman-led Italian club.
In the latter half, Tella and Boniface made their debuts.
With 21 goals and 10 assists in 33 games this season, Boniface leads Leverkusen in goal scoring, but the Nigerian international was only brought on by Xabi Alonso at the beginning of the second half by Xabi Alonso with the hopes of the Nigerian turning things around for them.
Lookman stole the show from his countrymen in the second half, which was an all-white traffic jam, and helped Atalanta win their first championship since their 1963 Coppa Italia victory.
Lookman is experiencing luck three times in a row. In February of last year, he scored three goals to lead Nigeria to the AFCON final, where they were defeated by the hosts, Ivory Coast. Last week, they lost to Juventus in the Coppa Italia final.
The victory in Dublin, which eases the pain of losing the Coppa Italia and the 2023 AFCON, has made the former Leicester City player laugh the hardest at the end of the 2023–2024 season. He is now staking his claim for the Africa Player of the Year Award, which Boniface is also probably going to be up for.
