Arsenal Vs Newcastle: Alex Iwobi still on trial

Arsenal travel to Newcastle United on Sunday afternoon in another meandering Premier League fixture. But for Alex Iwobi, the trial has only just begun, and for now, the jury is very much still out.

Let’s be honest, the Premier League is not the most interesting competition for Arsenal between now and the end of the season. With the top four out of reach, the title done and dusted by November, and no difference between a fifth, sixth or seventh position finish, the results don’t really matter at this point.

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Furthermore, given that the Europa League campaign has now entered the very late stages of the competition and offers both a trophy and a path into next season’s Champions League, Arsene Wenger has plainly shifted his resources away from the league and towards the European competition.

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That is quite expected. But it does leave some lesser storylines left to follow in the remaining Premier League games. Nevertheless, one player who I will be following closely is Alex Iwobi, especially after his performance against Southampton last weekend, playing in a role that I believe to be his best and most-suited.

This week, away at Newcastle United, it is anticipated that Wenger will set up in the same manner, with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang leading the line, two wide players, likely to be Reiss Nelson and Danny Welbeck again, and Iwobi as the creative fulcrum at the heart of it all.

He flourished in that role last weekend, but that has been a rare splash of colour on an extremely blotted report card for the year. Many fans have been extremely critical of his performances, perhaps suggesting that he should be sent out on loan or even sold this summer.

While I do not necessarily disagree with the loan sentiment, Iwobi will still want to prove that he has the quality to earn more playing time next season in the remaining handful of games.

And I will be very keen to watch him. I have always testified that he is a better player without the space-clogging presence of a myriad of different creators all crowbarred into the same midfield. When Iwobi has pace around him, which he will have in abundance with Aubameyang, Nelson Welbeck making runs off him, and space to work in, the twinkling of his feet, the whirring cogs of his mind, and his excellent short-game distribution all come to the fore.

This is not to say that Iwobi is a brilliant player when put in the right position. He had one good game. Consistency is king. And he several flaws that need to be worked on, no less than his shooting which is painfully weak.

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But Iwobi is on trial for his future in these coming games. There are certainly a great many prosecutors. I, however, am still happy to defend him, for now. It will be fascinating to see how he performs.