Former Premier League stars Troy Deeney and Nigel Roe-Coker have shared their thoughts on the shocking touchline altercation between Super Eagles forward Ademola Lookman and Atalanta head coach Ivan Juric during Wednesday night’s Champions League clash against Marseille, Footynaija.com reports.
Lookman was substituted moments before Atalanta sealed a dramatic 90th-minute winner in Marseille through Lazar Samardzic. Visibly frustrated as he walked off, the Nigerian forward appeared to exchange brief words with his manager.
Reacting to whatever was said, a furious-looking Juric grabbed Lookman’s arm for a quick but intense exchange before members of the technical staff intervened to calm things down.
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Troy Deeney slams Ivan Juric’s reaction
Discussing the situation during his coverage of the game for CBS Sports Golazo, Deeney, who played for Watford during his professional career berated the Croatian manager for his role in the altercation.
“Altercations happen all the time, but when you physically put your hands on somebody, at that point, me and you are not going to have a conversation again,” he said.
“There’s nothing you can say today, tomorrow, or next week that’ll make me forget that you did that to me in front of everyone.
“We’ve all had arguments, we’ve all had frustrations, back and forth, swearing and all these different things, said things we don’t like and vice versa.
“However, no one ever gets to the point of putting their hands on, and that’s the point for me.”
Nigel Roe-Coker echoes Deeney’s sentiments
Former West Ham and Aston Villa midfielder, Roe-Coker, who was also covering the game alongside Deeney didn’t mince words in his criticism of Juric in the wake of the incident.
“We don’t know if he’s going to apologise, but the simplest thing for me his when it comes to responsibility and powers of position, Juric is completely in the wrong there.
“You, as a manager, cannot do that, regardless of what was said or whatever it is.
“You’re the football manager, coaching Atalanta in the Champions League, that’s being shown around the world. You cannot do that.
“When you put your hands on a player like that. You have lost. Full stop. Regardless of what’s being said, that’s what is not allowed categorically.
“I’m sorry, but I don’t care what anyone says. We’ve seen managers have exchanged words with players and bust-ups, but we’ve never seen bigger managers than Juric, who’ve won bigger things, put their hands on players.”
What next for Ivan Juric and Ademola Lookman?
Addressing the altercation with Lookman after the game, Juric made effort to downplay the entire situation by labelling it a “usual occurrence” and assuring that it would be sorted in the dressing room.
However, for Lookman who endured a tumultuous summer where he pushed for an exit from Bergamo, this latest episode has only amped up growing speculations of an imminent January exit, with Turkish giants Galatasaray sniffing around.
