The non-league game has played a big part in numerous players becoming top-flight players in much more salubrious surroundings in Europe’s top division. However, there are very few former non-league youth stars that have risen the ranks to become the best player in their continent.
This is the story of one such player who has defied the odds and became African Footballer of the Year 2024. That player is Atalanta’s diminutive forward, Ademola Lookman.
The beginning of a promising career
Ademola Lookman was born in Wandsworth, London, to Nigerian parents. Instead of starting his football journey in an illustrious football academy, his path to stardom came at a youth football club called Waterloo, where he spent from 2008 until 2013.
It took a while for the Lookman to catch the eye. However, with the high density of football clubs in the English capital, it was always only going to be a matter of time before he made the move to a professional club.
In 2014, that’s precisely what happened as Charlton Athletic saw his potential and snapped up the young forward. Lookman’s ability to find the back of the net for the Addicks U-18 and U-21 teams soon caught the eye.
On 3rd November 2015, Lookman made his debut in Charlton Athletic’s first team. He scored his first-ever goal in senior football in a 3-2 defeat against Brighton Hove Albion on 5th December 2015. He also scored his first brace for the Addicks ten days later in a 2-2 draw against Bolton Wanderers.
From his debut until early January 2017, Lookman made 49 appearances in all competitions for Charlton, scoring 12 goals. His ability did not go unnoticed higher up the football pyramid, and on 5th January, he earned himself a big move.
Elation and disappointment at Everton
Lookman signed for Premier League Everton in the winter transfer window of 2017, joining the Merseyside giants for an initial fee of around £7.5m, a fee that could have risen to £11m with add-ons.
Delighted to have signed a long term contract @Everton. It wouldn’t be possible without God. Special place in my heart to all at CAFC❤ pic.twitter.com/CfAq1nT7d5
— Ademola Lookman (@Alookman_) January 5, 2017
The forward made a dream start to his career with the Toffees. Just ten days after his arrival, he came off the substitutes bench on 90 minutes against Manchester City. Despite his late arrival, he managed to mark his Toffees debut with a goal, making it 4-0 to the Merseysiders.
The goal raised expectations surrounding Lookman at the Merseyside club. During his first half a season with the Toffees, Lookman made eight first-team appearances, including playing in European action for the first time in a Europa League encounter against MFK Ruzomberok.
Despite his promising start at Everton, he struggled for first-team football on Merseyside. In the 2018 January transfer window, Lookman was sent out on loan to German Bundesliga outfit RB Leipzig in an effort to help him gain more first-team experience.
On his Leipzig debut, he scored the winning goal against Borussia Monchengladbach. He ended his temporary spell with five goals in just 11 appearances in all competitions.
His form impressed Everton, and they gave Lookman slightly more first-team football, as in the following season, he appeared in 24 games in all competitions. However, he managed to score just once during the campaign.
The start of a nomadic period in his career
In the summer of 2019, Ademola Lookman joined RB Leipzig on a permanent basis for a reported fee of around £15m. After the success of his first spell with Die Roten Bullen, expectations were high that Lookman would fulfil his potential, and the Bundesliga seemed like the perfect place to do so.
Unfortunately, just like at Everton, his second spell in Leipzig didn’t go as expected. He made just 13 appearances in all competitions for the German team in the 2019/20 season, failing to find the net.
The lack of game time and success led to a loan move to Fulham in 2020. Lookman experienced slightly more success in his second spell in the Premier League. However, he didn’t do enough to secure a permanent move to Craven Cottage.
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The following summer, Leipzig once again decided to loan Lookman to a Premier League. This time, he moved to Leicester City for season 2021/22, where he scored six times in 26 top-flight appearances.
During this season, Lookman decided to switch international allegiances from his country of birth, England, to that of his parents, Nigeria. The Super Eagles had courted the forward for a long time, but he resisted the temptation of a call, hoping that he would make the England squad.
However, he finally made his international debut for Nigeria in March 2022 in a 0-0 draw against Ghana in qualification for the 2022 World Cup.
The move that changed his career
Ademola Lookman had never really fulfilled his undoubted potential during his career. However, a move to Italian outfit Atalanta in the summer of 2022 for a reported fee of around £12.5m changed his career.
Like at his other clubs, the forward scored on his debut for the boys from Bergamo, firing home in a 2-0 win over Lazio. In his first season with the Nerazzurri, Lookman scored 15 times in 33 competitive appearances.
The following season, he maintained his scoring form, firing home 17 goals in 45 appearances in all competitions. In the 2023/24 season, he scored his first senior hat-trick of his career in the Europa League final in a 3-0 win over Bayer Leverkusen—the goals inflicted Die Werkself’s only loss of the season in any competition.
Lookman continued his consistent goalscoring form in the 2024/25 season, scoring 12 goals in his first 20 appearances for Atalanta in all competitions.
His goalscoring form didn’t go unnoticed on a worldwide scale, and in September 2024, Lookman was nominated for the prestigious Ballon d’Or award. He may not have won that award, but on 16th December 2024, Lookman was crowned the African Footballer of the Year.
The award was a recognition that Lookman has finally started to fulfil his potential as a footballer. The Nigerian international has added consistency to his technical ability with the ball and has become a massive success at Atalanta.
His current situation is a far cry from Waterloo and being considered a flop at both Everton and RB Leipzig (second spell). Not only has he found consistency, but enough to be considered his continent’s best player, and that is an incredible achievement in anybody’s book.