Ahead of Atletico Madrid's La Liga Round 7 match against Real Madrid at home on Sunday, forward Ademola Lookman gave an interview to ESPN.

Ademola Lookman. Great to see you.

Great to see you too.

You've had an amazing journey. You arrived mid-season last year, and the club immediately felt a new energy. But I'd like to know from your perspective, what was it like joining Atletico Madrid, a train that had already lost steam?

Yes. Actually, I've always said that my integration here has been very smooth, and it feels wonderful. This is largely due to the people here and the atmosphere in the dressing room. Both the coaching staff and my teammates welcomed me very warmly. So everything else on the pitch becomes much easier. Because everything off the pitch has been so comfortable, I feel very happy to be here. Of course, training and playing here in Madrid, and truly feeling the love of the fans—that feeling is really amazing.

Now that you've had time to settle, how do you assess last season? Because you nearly reached the Champions League final with the team, competed in La Liga, and reached the Copa del Rey final, but ended the season empty-handed. Looking back at all of this, what lessons have you learned? How do you feel now?

I think, looking back, we certainly had some very impressive performances. I think whether as a team or as an individual, you always want to do better, always looking for areas where you can continue to improve. That's all you can do. Find where you need to improve and then work hard. Work in those areas and become a more cohesive team—that's what we're doing. And you can only focus on the present, the present is what matters most, today is what matters most. So do your best today, push yourself to improve, that's it.

Currently, the team is in excellent form, playing very well with outstanding performances and a strong connection with the fans. But at the start of the season, because of the Alvarez situation, things were actually not easy. From the dressing room perspective, from the players' viewpoint, how did you all deal with that?

Football is football. As for outside voices, news off the pitch, external pressures—everything happening outside—it doesn't really...

But he's also your teammate.

Yes, of course. He is, of course, our teammate, someone we greatly admire, and an important player for us. But as I said, football is football—it's part of our job, part of our career. What matters most is always playing good football. So personally, I focus on playing football, and I believe the rest of the team does too, focusing on the match itself and doing our best.

As a teammate, a colleague, and also as a human being, do you feel you have a responsibility to try to help smooth things over and resolve this situation in some way? Because Alvarez might genuinely feel demoralized, unhappy, or even depressed, and that's not easy—I mean on a personal psychological level, right? I'm not talking about contract issues or anything between him and the club, I'm talking about a person's emotions.

Of course, everyone is human. Like you and me, you have emotions, and I have emotions. You might have certain feelings in a given situation, and I will have my own. This is true for everyone—it's human nature, everyone goes through emotional ups and downs. But ultimately...

So what have you done? I mean, on a personal level, have you tried to help smooth things over so everything goes back to normal? Is that possible?

The relationship has always been good, it's always been there. There has never been anything really broken, I don't feel there's any rift at all.

I mean to help him get through it, so he feels better, right?

Alvarez is a top player, and he knows that, the whole team knows that, everyone knows that. He's very important to us, and that's what matters most. Because ultimately, we're playing football, we want to win as many matches as possible, we want to bring passion and joy to the fans, to those who support us—that's what's most important. I think that's why we're here—to play good football and deliver exciting matches.

Do you think the rift between him and the fans can still be healed?

Well, that question should be answered by football, I don't think I should answer it. Ultimately...

Ultimately, it all depends on football. Yes, it all depends on football.

It really does depend on football. As I said, bringing joy and passion to the fans, to everyone, and winning as many matches as possible—that's what matters most. That's my view. I don't know what you think, or what others think, but that's how it is.

How are you looking forward to the upcoming Madrid derby? It's an extremely important match. You're currently in top form with a fantastic team spirit. Real Madrid has accumulated points, but perhaps hasn't shown their ideal performance yet, but they're still a top team. How do you view this big match?

I think it will be a challenging clash. Two top teams facing each other, both wanting to dominate the match and show their strength. No doubt about it, we're really looking forward to this difficult match, and we're ready for it.

Jan Diomandé is extremely agile, technically skilled, and good at dribbling; some of his technical attributes are very similar to yours. What's your take on him? He's still very young.

Yes, he's still very young, but as everyone can see, he has a very high skill level, and everyone knows his potential. He's another talented player who has come to La Liga, and he will try to show his ability and do his best. So, good luck to him.

But you can't wish him luck in Sunday's match! (laughs)

Good luck to him, but of course, not for Sunday's match. (laughs)

Do you think the scene from the first derby at Metropolitano last season could be repeated this time? I mean scoring multiple goals against Real Madrid?

The team has done that before, and we will try to perform at that level again. We need to create chances, create as many chances as possible, and do our best to convert them into goals.

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