By Abuja, Nigeria
Ademola Lookman has being impressive since signing for La Liga side Atletico Madrid, registering a goal at his debut and finding the back of the net again as Atletico Madrid demolishes Barcelona in the semifinals of the Copa Del Rey on Thursday night.
Barcelona felt the full force of Ademola Lookman’s brilliance as the Super Eagles star put up another man-of-the-match performance in the Copa del Rey for Atletico Madrid.
Lookman scored, provided an assist, and forced an own goal as Atletico Madrid shocked the Spanish league leaders 4-0 in the first leg of their Copa del Rey semifinal.
Atlético Madrid produced a stunning first-half display to overwhelm Barcelona in a historic Copa del Rey clash. Giuliano Simeone forced an early save from Joan García, but the goalkeeper gifted Atlético the opener just six minutes in, misjudging a back pass from Eric García that trickled over the line.
Despite Barcelona enjoying spells of possession, Atlético were ruthless. Antoine Griezmann doubled the lead 15 minutes with a composed low finish after finding space in the box.
Barcelona threatened in response, with Fermín López hitting the woodwork and Jules Koundé clearing Julián Alvarez’s effort off the line. However, Atlético continued to slice through the visitors, and Ademola Lookman added a third on the counterattack.
Deep into stoppage time, Alvarez smashed home from the edge of the area to make it 4-0, only the second time since 2004/05 that Barcelona had conceded four goals before half-time.
After the break, Juan Musso denied Fermín, while Pau Cubarsí had a goal ruled out for offside following a lengthy VAR check. Barcelona’s frustration grew, and Eric García was later sent off. Atlético eased off late on to seal their first Copa del Rey win over Barcelona in nine meetings, handing Hansi Flick his first defeat in the competition.
