The Nigeria international saw action for 88 minutes before he was pulled off for a player who went on to score the Toffees’ second goal of the afternoon, yet fans could not stop singing his praises for a job well done.
On a day when Everton manager Marcos Silva was desperate for victory – or face the sack – he chose to place his trust on Alex Iwobi as his team’s number 10 and he was rewarded with a fine performance from the former Arsenal man.
Alex Iwobi did not score neither did he provide any assist but he was positive in his play and was generally too hot to handle as Everton finally arrested a rotten form of consecutive losses to beat West Ham 2-0 on Saturday, thanks to goals from Bernard and Sigurdsson.
The 23-year-old Nigerian playmaker completed more final third passes than any other player on the pitch between Everton and West Ham, two of which directly lead to a shot, Soccernet.ng reports.
In a player ratings done after the game by Liverpool Echo, Iwobi scored a 9/10 for being a “creative hub in the middle for Everton, looking to attack West Ham whenever picking up possession. They had no idea how to deal with him in the first half and his work rate never dropped until being replaced by Sigurdsson late on.”
Fans also took to social media site Twitter to express their pleasure at Iwobi’s fine display.
Alex Iwobi for Everton in the first half vs. West Ham:
most take-ons attempted (5)
most successful take-ons (3)
joint most chances created (2)Always looks impressive when played as a ten. 👏👏👏 pic.twitter.com/yGOZrEcT5Z
— Statman Dave (@StatmanDave) October 19, 2019
Iwobi playing centrally is different gravy.
— LTArsenal™ (@ltarsenal) October 19, 2019
https://www.twitter.com/PartAdam/status/1185533297142697989
https://www.twitter.com/MinasNathan99/status/1185524749872615425
What's Iwobi doing pic.twitter.com/hZymbmMu0I
— ~ (@efcIucas) October 19, 2019
Iwobi when he’s playing as a #10. pic.twitter.com/skI6zAxgz2
— ً (@utdcynical) October 19, 2019
Arsenal actually spent £72m on a player who isn’t even as good as Iwobi. pic.twitter.com/6RCNKLcK8r
— J5 ⭐️⭐️ (@ChelseaJF5) October 19, 2019
Alex Iwobi in the number 10 position is causing Mark Noble more concern than today's Brexit vote
— FootballJOE (@FootballJOE) October 19, 2019
Alex Iwobi completed 18 passes in the final third vs. West Ham, 6 more than any other player on the pitch.
Quality. 👌👌👌 pic.twitter.com/AElTicBtiM
— Statman Dave (@StatmanDave) October 19, 2019
https://www.twitter.com/CFCBrano/status/1185537535193354240
Say what?
— Cephas-Rock§ 🇳🇬 (@Cephil0) October 19, 2019
FT: 1-0
– Could have easily been 3 or 4
– Andre Gomes back to his Rolls-Royce self
– Iwobi class in the 10 role
– One of Walcott's best games
– Sidibe solid performance at RB
– Now need to perform like that consistently
🔵 #EFC #EVEWHU pic.twitter.com/rfS5OxRxVr— The-Toffees (@thetoffees_com) October 19, 2019
Huge win propelled by this man, Alex Iwobi, who has all the making of an Everton cult hero in the mould of Tim Cahill. 100% Commitment, Tenacity and Heart. Sometimes it works. Sometimes it doesn't. But always All In. Ready to make every moment matter 🙌 pic.twitter.com/X3DyfCpVew
— roger bennett (@rogbennett) October 19, 2019
I hope he transfer the play making role to Super Eagles. Keep it up!