Atalanta forward Ademola Lookman has said the support and love from his country-people inspire him to be better.
Lookman was the hero for Atalanta on an historic night in Dublin, hitting a hattrick to give the Italians a 3-0 victory over Bayer Leverkusen in the Europa League final.
Lookman, who was born in London, turned his allegiance to Nigeria and made his debut for the Super Eagles in 2022.
“It’s incredible,” he told Omasports in a post-match presser. “And I said this earlier that the support and love I get from people back home [Nigeria] is unbelievable. It gives me the motivation and inspires me.
“It helps me evolve. Not just in my game but me as a person also. It’s incredible.”
The 26-year-old became only the sixth player to score a hat-trick in a European final – the first since Jupp Heynckes for Borussia Monchengladbach in the 1975 Uefa Cup – with all three goals in the Italian side’s win over Bayer Leverkusen in Dublin.