Long-serving Charlton Athletic director, Steve Avory, has shared insights into the early days of Nigerian forward Ademola Lookman at the club, revealing that the scouts initially didn’t pay much attention to him before his promotion to the first team in 2015, as reported by IWITNESSLIVE Sports.
Lookman, signed by Charlton in 2013 at the age of 16, made his Championship debut in 2015 before transferring to Everton in 2017. Avory, who has consistently praised Lookman, acknowledged the oversight in a new documentary.
Despite the club’s tradition of developing young talent, Avory admitted, ‘Even our team of scouts at that time were not too aware of Ademola Lookman.’ The player has since flourished, particularly during his time with Atalanta last season.
“Everybody just wanted to do better with themselves and wanted to achieve great things which was cool. Football is always my number one joy, my number one love and now I’m enjoying it every single day so it’s a blessing. I always look to learn and grow,” Lookman also said in the documentary.
Lookman made 49 appearances for Charlton before his transfer to Everton which forced him to make further loan moves to RB Leipzig, Fulham and Leicester City before finally joining Atalanta on a four-year contract for a reported fee of €15m.
“It hasn’t surprised me that he has coped with all of the different club environments he has been to. Because he is a young man who seems to just take things in his stride so well,” Avory said.
“We are talking about a young man here who is playing at the top level. He truly has made it. We want and hope that he continues doing that for good years to come,” he added.
This season, the Super Eagles forward has also contributed six goals and three assists in the Serie A, also reaching the round of 16 of the Europa League with the club.
