Arsenal: Keep with Alex Iwobi, he’s only getting better

Arsenal gave Alex Iwobi another start in the match against Watford, leaving Mesut Ozil on the bench, and this was absolutely the right decision.

I’m sure I’m not the only one still seething about the match against Watford. Arsenal defended so well all match long and they had the life sucked out of them by one, pathetic flop that “earned” a penalty.

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The problem with Arsenal was, surprisingly, from the defense up. The holding midfield duo did not work and the attacking trio did not work. There was a clear schism of communication between the two sectors and there were even more schism’s between the individual attackers.

But in the midst of all of it was Alex Iwobi, who got the start ahead of Mesut Ozil.

Let me just state my poit right off the bat and go from there: Alex Iwobi was superb, particularly in the first half. It was the right decision to start him and he should continue to start, because the lad is getting better.

Iwobi had a great individual performance among the heaping pile of dung that surrounded him. He was a ball of energy, doing his best Alexis Sanchez impersonation despite always being compared to Ozil.

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He was confident, and that’s the main thing. Iwobi’s level of effectiveness has always been strictly dependent on how confident he is and he was certainly confident. Given the lack of a midfield pivot, Iwobi appointed himself as the primary swivel between offense and defense. He managed more touches than his two attacking mates combined.

Iwobi showcased pace that we aren’t used to seeing as well strength that we knew he had, but also weren’t used to seeing. He was a competent attacker who was just a bit starved for quality around him. Or, better yet, being on the same wavelength as those around him.

By no means was he perfect, as he certainly has his own shortcomings, but he is only getting better and that’s why it’s so important that we stick with him and let him continue to improve, so long as that is his trajectory.

Iwobi really broke into the first team picture with performances just like this at the end of the 2015/16 season. It’s been hard seeing him try to reestablish that form over the past year or so, but now that he is flirting with that level of performance again, we can’t disrupt it.

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That said, chances are absolutely needed in the attack, so that leaves the question of who starts next to him, especially given Danny Welbeck‘s new injury.