8 hours Ago By Abiodun Adewale
After scoring his sixth and seventh Premier League goals of the season in January, it seemed Alex Iwobi was done in what was becoming the best season of his career, but the Fulham midfielder has kept marching on, adding one more goal and an assist in April, and reminding everyone that he can only get better, PUNCH Sports Extra reports. On Sunday, the Nigerian midfielder played a key role for Fulham as they inflicted a 3-2 defeat on runaway league leaders Liverpool, boosting their chances of playing in Europe next season and also delaying the Reds’ title run in the process. Iwobi scored one and set up another goal in the Cottagers’ fight back against the Reds, taking his season’s tally to eight goals and five assists in 31 games – the best return of his career since he made his professional debut at Arsenal.
His involvement in the breathtaking flurry of Fulham to beat Liverpool 3-2 at Craven Cottage also earned him a place in the One Football Team of The Week. Before this season, his best return in terms of goals was last term, after arriving at Fulham in the summer of 2023, scoring five goals. In terms of assists, his best was at Everton in the 2022/23 season when he had seven.
Also, his three goals and six assists for Arsenal in the 2018/19 season for Arsenal – his last season with the Gunners – was his best in terms of goal contribution. With seven matches still to play, the 28-year-old might still be able to add to his 13-goal contribution, and the possibility of taking his goals to double figures would be exciting as Fulham are also chasing European football. Marcos Silva’s men are currently eighth in the table with 48 points.
Speaking about his ambition with the club earlier this season, Iwobi was unequivocal about their ambition and the influence of the manager. “You could say it is my best start to the season—I just have to keep it going and make sure it’s my best season. That’s the aim,” Iwobi said after scoring his fifth goal of the season in December 2024.
Related News Southampton sack manager Juric after Premier League relegation Different Strokes! Iwobi powers Fulham European ambition as Onuachu, Aribo relegate EPL: Southampton relegated in record time after Tottenham defeat “It’s nice to have a manager who gives you the confidence to do that. Players normally do well when they are confident and with me, feeling confident to express myself on and off the pitch, I almost feel unstoppable. “We just have to keep on pushing; we see the quality in training every day.
We’re all very ambitious, and we take things step by step. It’s [European qualification] definitely in the back of our minds, though.” Currently, he is Fulham’s joint-second highest goal scorer, sitting just two goals behind striker Raul Jiminez while he is the third-best provider in the team.
In his 10 seasons in the English topflight – a spell that has taken him from Arsenal to Everton and now at Fulham – Iwobi now has 30 goals and 34 in 284 Premier League appearances. While he is still seventh among the highest-scoring Nigerians in the EPL with his 30 goals, the Arsenal Academy product is the best Nigerian provider in the history of the English topflight with (35) assists, currently five more than former Arsenal man, Nwankwo Kanu. In terms of goals, he is behind Osaze Odemwingie (37), Kelechi Iheanacho (42), Shola Ameobi (43), Efan Ekoku (53), Kanu (54) and Yakubu Aiyegbeni (95).
If it takes him at least three games to score a goal, mathematically, he should be able to add two more goals this season. The 28-year-old seems to be made for the Premier League as well and more years in the English topflight should see him move up the ladder among his compatriots as well. After leaving Arsenal in 2019, Iwobi joined Everton, where his playmaking abilities flourished.
His time at Everton saw him adapt to new roles, showcasing his versatility and work rate. Now at Fulham, Iwobi continues to evolve, becoming a crucial part of Silva’s setup and contributing both offensively and defensively..
