Arsenal: Alex Iwobi Must Honour His Uncle’s Call For Perseverance

Alex Iwobi has seen his position in the Arsenal squad diminish. He must now honour his Uncle’s call for perseverance and work his way back to prominence.

The development of young players is a turbulent ride. As ever with raw, unpolished, unrefined talents, they will always enjoy times of searing success, where their youthful exuberance shines through, alongside times of great struggle, where their inexperience and naivety plagues their performances. Arsenal have experienced this on a number of occasions.

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It is a reason why Arsene Wenger has grown enormously patient as he harnesses the natural talent of many of his players. He is willing to endure the times of trouble as they grow in their consistency as they age.

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The latest star who is benefitting from Wenger’s tutelage with young players is Alex Iwobi. The Nigerian burst onto the scene a little over a year ago, with a series of dynamic, direct displays, showcasing a willingness to drive at opposing defences and a guile and nous to engineer opportunities and create chances. However, more recently, struggles, as they always do, have come.

Wenger has subsequently dropped Iwobi from the first team squad, providing him with an element of protection and safety amid growing criticism from fans. And now there are suggestions that a loan departure could be the best course of action to further his career. That is not the opinion of his Uncle, though. Jay-Jay Okocha has stated that he believes Iwobi should stay in North London and fight for his starting role:

"“We can’t forget that this is his first full season in the first team and Arsenal have all their players back now. There’s a lot of competition, so it’s not easy. I think it’s better for him to stay at Arsenal, because the style of play suits him perfectly. It might not be easy for him to go on loan and adapt somewhere else. He needs to stay and fight for his shirt.”"

Okocha is acutely aware of the natural struggles that come with being a young player. His advice for Iwobi is simple and safe: keep working hard, be resilient and determined, show perseverance and grit, and success will come as a result.

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It is now up to Iwobi to honour such demands. He is undoubtedly a talented player who, if he works hard, has a bright future ahead of him. Although his recent struggles are disappointing, they are not all that surprising, and can be worked through. It will simply take patience, resilience and whole lot of dedication.