da esport bet： This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers…
da leao： Alex Iwobi has been speaking to Evertonfc.com ahead of the trip to Anfield this evening and he has alluded to a growing relationship with another of the club’s summer signings.
What’s the word?
Iwobi has impressed in fleeting bursts since making the move to Goodison Park but consistency has been difficult to come by.
Marco Silva’s squad rotation has rendered it difficult for the Nigeria international to fully get into his groove, but there has been enough promise to suggest he could play a key role at the club moving forward.
Iwobi’s statistics have never been particularly groundbreaking and the fact he is yet to claim a single assist for the Toffees attests to that. The highest number of assists he managed to achieve in one season was in the 2018/19 campaign, which he finished with six to his name from 35 Premier League appearances.
But, as is so often the case for creative players, Iwobi is often the man behind the assist, the player who unlocks the door and creates the space for the final pass to be made.
Statistically speaking there is no label or measurement to track these types of contributions, but the former Arsenal man’s ability to assist the assist, if you will, was evident at both Southampton and Leicester.
Djibril Sidibe, who has been capped 18 times by France, was the player picked out on both occasions, and Iwobi has suggested a devastating understanding is beginning to flourish between the two players, per Evertonfc.com.
“I have linked up with Djibril in training. Every time I get the ball he is telling me he will be making the run, so I just have to find him.
“Against Southampton, we did the same thing [for the goal].
“Our relationship is developing and we have to keep it going and produce more so we can win games.”
Watch Liverpool V Everton Live and Free with Amazon Prime Chemistry could give Silva a dilemma over Sigurdsson
It’s no coincidence that Everton’s downturn in form this season has arrived in tandem with a dip in the standard previously set by Gylfi Sigurdsson.
The Iceland international was the beating heart of the attacking play last season, registering six assists and 13 goals throughout the season.
But the spark that defined his game last season has been absent, and Iwobi’s arrival has certainly given Silva something to think about given he has both Richarlison and Bernard to chose from on the left.
The relationship the summer arrival is beginning to establish with Sidibe has already proven to be a productive one and it could prove to be a fruitful weapon during the AS Monaco man’s loan spell.
Sigurdsson has the ability to be a game-changing player on his day, but Iwobi’s ability to connect the dots is beginning to come to the fore at Everton.
While that’s a positive sign for the club as a whole, it could reduce Sigurdsson’s importance and see him on the substitutes bench more often than he would like.