Arsenal and Alex Iwobi: Adapt or die

With the return of Reiss Nelson and impending signing of Nicolas Pepe, Alex Iwobi now has some serious competition at the wing position. It is time for him to adapt or he will see his Arsenal career quickly die.

Due to Nigeria’s late run in the African Cup of Nations, Alex Iwobi is yet to join up with the Arsenal squad for pre-season preparations ahead of the upcoming campaign. As such, it is easy to forget that he is still a part of the squad — and was a key part of the squad last year — and is trusted by Unai Emery to execute on the pitch.

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Playing largely in a wide role last year, Iwobi illustrated improvement in several key areas. He recorded more goals and assists than in any season of his career, with 13 in the Premier League and Europa League, he looked more confident in and around the final third, if still a little panicked at times, and was more direct in his dribbling style, looking to beat defenders early and with purpose, rather than hesitating and slowing down attacks.

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Iwobi was not perfect last season, however, and there were clear signs of his limitations. He still does not score enough goals or provide enough assists to warrant his position and playing time, and while he is an extremely technically sound player, his delivery into the penalty area is inconsistent at best. Given his, and other’s, struggles in the wide positions last season, Arsenal dipped into the academy and the transfer market to solve their problems.

Reiss Nelson and Bukayo Saka were promoted from the youth system, with the former expected to push for a starting role next season, Gabriel Martinelli, another direct, goalscoring winger, was signed early in the window as a high-ceiling roll of the dice, while the biggest move of all, the £72 million signing of Nicolas Pepe, undoubtedly relegates Iwobi to the bench. Suddenly, there is great competition for places.

For Iwobi and his Arsenal career, then, as evolution dictates, it is survival of the fittest. He must adapt or die. And the Nigerian international can, I believe, adapt in two different ways, both of which could see him re-establish himself in the first team.

The first is to work on what he has already been working on in recent years, only to make greater strides in it: his production. Both Arsene Wenger and Unai Emery challenged Iwobi to improve the number of goals and assists he produces. If he wants to play semi-regularly, he must now make significant strides in this area.

The second is to change position. While Iwobi has limited success with his end product, he is an excellent dribbler, has a terrific change of direction, agility, acceleration and deceptive strength, and is a very strong passer and progresser of the ball. All these qualities lend him to being a rather impactful central midfielder, someone who can receive the ball from the defence and progress it up the field, either via dribbling past opponents, driving into open space, or playing line-breaking passes to more advanced teammates.

This is the type of role that Arsenal have struggled to fill in recent seasons, really since the injury to Santi Cazorla in 2016. Dani Ceballos, signed on loan from Real Madrid, will likely be tasked with providing this exact impact in the midfield, but there is room for another. Granit Xhaka is not capable of this, neither is Lucas Torreira, while Matteo Guendouzi is extremely young and is still a little rough around the edges. Plus, Ceballos might well be gone next summer. Iwobi could make this position his own.

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Iwobi is a much-maligned and largely underrated player. He has a wide-ranging skill set that is belied by his lack of production. And this season, he will not be handed a starting role because there are no other options. Emery has choices. Iwobi must prove that he is number one. He must adapt or die.

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