Ademola Lookman: 2 ways Atletico star can hurt Real Madrid

Super Eagles star Ademola Lookman has been identified by Diego Simeone as a specific tactical weapon Atletico Madrid will unleash in tomorrow’s Madrid derby against Real Madrid at the Metropolitano, Afrik-Foot reports.

The 28-year-old has endured a slow start to the season, producing few standout individual moments across the opening six La Liga fixtures.

However, Simeone’s Friday press conference highlighted Lookman’s importance to Atletico’s attacking plans ahead of the biggest derby fixture of Spanish football.

“[Lookman] is a footballer with a profile we do not have many of,” Simeone said in quotes revealed by Marca.

“He is the most unbalancing one-v-one player on the edge of the box. We need him, whether it is 60, 70 minutes or however long he plays.

“He has been very good for us since he arrived, and although his start to the season is not the one he would want, we need him.”

Atletico are expected to line up in a 4-4-2 with Lookman either starting as one of two forwards alongside Jonathan David, or operating on the left flank.

2 ways Ademola Lookman can hurt Real Madrid

1. Attacking a makeshift Real Madrid centre-back pair without Militão

The first way Lookman can hurt Real Madrid is by directly targeting the specific defensive vulnerability Mourinho has been forced to accept without his settled first-choice centre-back.

Éder Militão is ruled out with a muscle injury, which will likely force Jose Mourinho into an Ibrahima Konaté and Dean Huijsen partnership

Konaté brings physical presence and recovery pace, but the summer signing is well known for being vulnerable in tight one-v-one duels around the edge of the box against direct dribblers of Lookman’s profile.

Huijsen is technically gifted but has never played in a Madrid derby before, and his individual concentration under pressure, one the Metropolitano generates, is also something Lookman can capitalise on.

The Nigerian’s licence to drop between Real Madrid’s back four and their Tchouaméni-Valverde midfield pivot in the 4-4-2 gives him space to isolate either centre-back at the edge of the box and then shoot or create chances for his teammates.

2. Late-game impact against Real Madrid’s proven closing-stages fragility

The second way Lookman can hurt Real Madrid is by producing the type of late-game cameo Simeone specifically signalled in his press conference.

The specific evidence for how Real Madrid’s closing-stages defensive concentration can collapse arrived at Elche on Tuesday. Mourinho’s side were 2-0 up and cruising before conceding twice in quick succession, requiring a late winner to seal the 3-2 victory.

That specific late-game defensive lapse against a mid-table side is precisely the type of moment Simeone will now try to replicate against a Real Madrid back four that will have been under sustained derby intensity for the full 90 minutes.

The Metropolitano’s historical atmosphere supports the case. Real Madrid have won just one of their last nine visits to the Metropolitano. Atletico have won three of the last five home derbies, and last season’s fixture at the venue produced a huge 5-2 Atletico victory.

For Atletico as a collective, the role Lookman occupies in the game will be defined by how Simeone commits to attacking Real Madrid’s defensive vulnerability.