Arsenal: Alex Iwobi looks like a different player

Alex Iwobi has enjoyed an extremely promising start to the Unai Emery era. The Arsenal midfielder is looking like a different player, and it’s nice to see.

Alex Iwobi has always been an extremely talented player. Ever since he broke onto the scene over two years ago, his natural flair for the game has been evident. But the Arsenal youngster — who is very quickly turning into the Arsenal veteran — has never been a productive player.

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Over the past two full seasons, Iwobi has played in more than 3000 minutes. He has just six goals and eight assists. It’s not a particularly positive rate for a player in a team as creative and high-scoring as the Gunners. Even Arsene Wenger publicly called Iwobi out for his lack of goals and assists.

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But this season, Iwobi has looked like a different player. A completely different player. Direct, intentional, purposeful, sharp. And, most importantly, productive. In 329 minutes of action in all competitions, Iwobi has scored once and added three assists, a direct involvement in a goal every 82.25 minutes, a far better rate than his previous seasons.

Admittedly, these numbers come from a very small sample size and it would be somewhat surprising if Iwobi was able to maintain this rate throughout the season. But the early signs are positive. Very positive. And Unai Emery, the man who should be credited with Iwobi’s resurgence, is happy as a result:

"“I’m very happy with him and his mentality. He has the quality to play right or left, to do more one-on-ones against the opposition. I want him to stay nearer the box to score and be more aggressive, finding assists for team-mates. This is the way for him and other players.”"

The sentiment of being more positive with the ball, being willing to take risks in the final third and to push the envelope when it comes to goals and assists was reflected by Iwobi after Saturday afternoon’s 2-0 win over Watford, in which the winger produced an assist for the opening goal with a wicked cross into the six-yard box:

"“I’m more positive and more confident with the ball. The boss has basically told me that if something doesn’t work, just keep going and don’t dwell on it. He’s told me to stop being so critical and to just keep trying no matter what happens, no matter if things don’t go as I want them to. That’s given me a lot more confidence to try a few more things, like beat a player, to shoot more. I’m always ready to get on the ball a bit more, so I guess it’s helped in that sense. I’ve lost a bit of weight because of the intense training and I think it’s made me a bit sharper.”"

But more than just the stats, Iwobi just looks like a different player to what he has been in recent seasons. That same youthful drive that he first broke into the team with has replaced the hesitancy and uncertainty that plagued his game. His fleetness of foot has returned. His dribbling is as sharp as ever. His end product, in service especially, has improved markedly.

Iwobi is a different player. Emery deserves a lot of credit for this, as does Iwobi himself. For how long it will last remains to be seen. But for however long it does, I will be quite happy watching it.