Alex Iwobi has been captured giving Demarai Gray a very clear message in the tunnel after Everton’s first win of the season.
Iwobi has gone from a £35 million flop that was struggling to score goals, just four in the league from when he joined back in 2019, to a combative midfielder that is ranking inside the top four when it comes to tackles, pressures and key passes.
Although everything isn’t all great as he appears to be lacking a bit of speed, a key factor that may well have been holding him back when playing on the winger, something which the Everton tunnel camera caught him talking to Gray about.
The Nigerian international was captured talking to Gray after the win and he had this to say to his teammate.
‘That’ll be the last time that I try to overlap you because when I tried to overlap you, I wasn’t catching you. You were off and I was sprinting for my life.”
Is Iwobi currently Everton's best player?
Yes!
No!
TIF Thoughts on Iwobi…
If it’s true that Iwobi was struggling to even complete an overlap of Gray then it may come as little surprise as to why he wasn’t getting much success as a winger if his speed isn’t up to the level of others in the Premier League.
However, Lampard has clearly found other attributes in the midfielder, such as his ability to keep running for a long time without getting tired, something he’s admitted needs to be reigned in at times during training sessions, but will obviously be a huge benefit during games.
Considering Iwobi’s new role forces him to be effective at both ends of the pitch his main role and responsibility won’t involve overlapping wingers such as Gray, but the fact he’s willing to do so just shows how much of a team player he is for the Toffees.