Diego Simeone Issues Update on Lookman’s Injury Ahead of Key UCL Clash vs Arsenal
- Atletico Madrid head coach Diego Simeone gave an update on Ademola Lookman’s injury
- Lookman was substituted in the 62nd minute of the Copa del Rey final due to an adductor injury
- Atletico will host Arsenal in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League semi-final at the Metropolitano
Atletico Madrid boss Diego Simeone has provided the latest update on Ademola Lookman’s injury ahead of the UEFA Champions League semi-final.
Simeone substituted Lookman in the 62nd minute of the Copa del Rey final loss to Real Sociedad, raising questions regarding his typical one-hour mark substitution.
Source: Getty Images
Atletico released a statement afterwards confirming that the Super Eagles forward will train alone to manage the risk of injury and has yet to feature since then.
Los Rojiblancos will host Arsenal in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League semi-final at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano on Wednesday.
Simeone’s update on Lookman's injury
Diego Simeone, during his pre-match press conference, was asked whether the Nigerian international would be available.
The manager praised Lookman’s impact since his arrival and added that the forward is also working on his defensive duties.
“Well, the truth is that his arrival has had a very positive impact on the team. The truth is that he brings something special offensively. He’s working much harder on his defensive duties,” he said as quoted by Into the Calderon.
On whether the player would be fit to face Arsenal, he said:
“We’ll see if he recovers well by tomorrow, because he was still feeling some discomfort today. So we’ll see if he can help us tomorrow or not.”
Atletico Madrid is not the only team with injury concerns. Mikel Arteta confirmed the status of some of his players who have had fitness issues recently.
Kai Havertz, who scored the goal that helped Arsenal eliminate Sporting CP to reach the semi-finals, is ruled out after sustaining an injury against Newcastle United.
Eberechi Eze, the match winner and another injury casualty from the Newcastle match, has been passed fit and will be in contention to start in Madrid.
Riccardo Calafiori and Bukayo Saka are also available, while Jurrien Timber, whose return date Arteta confirmed is still unknown, remains sidelined.
Source: Getty Images
The two sides, which are the only teams yet to win the trophy left in the competition, aim to gain an early advantage heading into the second leg.
Arteta confirmed his plan for the first leg is to win the match and secure an advantage heading into the return leg at the Emirates Stadium.
“That's what we want to do, we have prepared the game to win it - there's no question about that. We have to be ourselves and do what we do constantly with our opponents,” he said as quoted by Arsenal.com.
“And then, let's see what the game throws, the level that we can show, the quality that we can show, and hopefully that's going to be the case.”
Lookman sends message to Arsenal
Legit.ng previously reported that Ademola Lookman sent a message to Arsenal ahead of their UEFA Champions League semi-final clash in Madrid.
The Super Eagles attacker acknowledged that Arsenal is a tough team, but is confident that the Metropolitano crowd can spur the team to victory.
Proofreading by Funmilayo Aremu, copy editor at Legit.ng.
Source: Legit.ng
