I know this post is not only about Iwobi, but something needs to be said. I listen to all the podcasts and read all the articles (keep up the good work), but in all this criticism, of Iwobi for being slow on Saturday I have not heard one person say "to be fair to Iwobi, he did just two other games in the past week for his nation" it is true he is not the fastest player but that performance was not representative of him as a whole. Contrasted to the performance of kevin, he looked all that much slower. On the point of him playing in the middle, I think it is a great idea, it is also where he played for Nigeria against South Africa.
Good piece! But it’s worth remembering, I think, that Marco’s Fulham are not strangers to free-flowing, joyful football, and not in some distant past, but just last season. That four-game burst, when we banged in 16 goals and handed out successive 5-0 hidings to both Forest and West Ham, showed we are capable of being expansive and ruthless. That wasn’t a relic of the Championship; it was in the Premier League football, and for FFC, almost surreal!
That run also underlines how central Iwobi was to injecting some fluency and unpredictability into our play. His ability to receive the ball under pressure, drive through midfield, and link attacks gave us an extra dimension that felt less choreographed and more spontaneous. This should show the raw material for joyful football is still there.
But your piece also reminded me of Roy Hodgson’s era. Back then, with Hangeland and Hughes marshalling the back line, we were expertly drilled, miserly, and stubborn, but rarely capable of putting sides to the sword. The ‘control’ came through organisation and restraint, a good platform for stability, but not much imagination and initiative evident. Marco’s team seems different; characteristic of a more progressive, adaptable control, but which can still drift towards predictability.
This is where Iwobi becomes interesting. Using him as a No. 8, rather than tethered out wide, echoes Paisley’s seemingly odd – at the time - repurposing of Ray Kennedy. That switch helped Liverpool turn solidity into dominance by adding intelligence, guile, and a touch of the unexpected in midfield. Iwobi may not be Kennedy reborn, but he has the instincts to both protect structure and break it open when required.
If Fulham want to rediscover that joyful side without throwing away the stability Marco has built, it may not be about overhauling the philosophy, but about fine-tuning roles. Let the trusted midfield anchors of Berge and Lukic shoulder the ‘control’, and give Iwobi licence to roam, create, and surprise. The right balance could still be struck, and as we saw last season, the rewards could be surreal!
Good article and agree with the reply. It is really promising that we are looking more solid than before (ignoring the penalties!) and attacking fluidity comes so much from confidence/momentum sometimes.
What is also promising is that Silva clearly isn’t unaware of this problem having pushed for the winger signings and Smith Rowe last year, who with a run of games I would hope can start to unlock defences more - he also made a big impact on the Leeds game.
We all know Iwobi on form last year was our best attacker by some distance and with the new signings hopefully he won’t be relied on to play every single game at his highest level like before. Silva has time and time again found ways to make the attack work the best it can - 55,55,54 goals in the last 3 seasons with not much investment in attack compared to others - so we need to back him to do it again!
I agree and disagree with you. As mentioned in the comments, Emilie Smith Rowe (ESR) was supposed to bring flair and creativity to the attack, but he hasn't flourished yet. Maybe King can bring that in the offensive midfield.
For the two defensive midfielders (mostly Berge and Lukic), they brings stability when the fullbacks go forward and turn into wingers. Last season, that worked very well when Robinson had a great season with most touches by a fullback in the opposition's box (couldn't find the article where I read it, but here is an overview from Opta analyst dated Dec 2024): https://theanalyst.com/articles/antonee-robinson-fulham-stats-liverpool
When the fullbacks join the attack and double up on the wings like in the best matches last season, the opposition's midfield will be drawn to that side to defend and thereby creating space for players like ESR og King. This season so far, we have not had such good contributions from the fullbacks. Robinson is still recovering from his surgery this summer, so I hope that things will be better when he is 100% recovered. Sessegnon is a good player, but not at Robinson's level in the attack. Tete has had a very good season so far, but is he better at defending than attacking? (replies to this question are very welcome).
One of the question is who are joining the attack? Last season it was Robinson on almost every possible occasion. This season, the fullbacks has not joined that much. If the fullbacks are not able or willing to join the attack, one of the holding midfielders should. But I don't think Silva is willing to change his tactics yet. Getting the fullbacks forward more often is (one of) the best solution in my opinion.
As a Norwegian Fulham-supporter, I don't watch all the matches, so I don't have the same insight as others who go to all matches: I am very happy to read comments on my comment :)
Agree with the point about transfers but I think it is too soon to write off Smith Rowe - just because it hasn't worked fully yet doesn't mean it won't going forward
I know this post is not only about Iwobi, but something needs to be said. I listen to all the podcasts and read all the articles (keep up the good work), but in all this criticism, of Iwobi for being slow on Saturday I have not heard one person say "to be fair to Iwobi, he did just two other games in the past week for his nation" it is true he is not the fastest player but that performance was not representative of him as a whole. Contrasted to the performance of kevin, he looked all that much slower. On the point of him playing in the middle, I think it is a great idea, it is also where he played for Nigeria against South Africa.
Good piece! But it’s worth remembering, I think, that Marco’s Fulham are not strangers to free-flowing, joyful football, and not in some distant past, but just last season. That four-game burst, when we banged in 16 goals and handed out successive 5-0 hidings to both Forest and West Ham, showed we are capable of being expansive and ruthless. That wasn’t a relic of the Championship; it was in the Premier League football, and for FFC, almost surreal!
That run also underlines how central Iwobi was to injecting some fluency and unpredictability into our play. His ability to receive the ball under pressure, drive through midfield, and link attacks gave us an extra dimension that felt less choreographed and more spontaneous. This should show the raw material for joyful football is still there.
But your piece also reminded me of Roy Hodgson’s era. Back then, with Hangeland and Hughes marshalling the back line, we were expertly drilled, miserly, and stubborn, but rarely capable of putting sides to the sword. The ‘control’ came through organisation and restraint, a good platform for stability, but not much imagination and initiative evident. Marco’s team seems different; characteristic of a more progressive, adaptable control, but which can still drift towards predictability.
This is where Iwobi becomes interesting. Using him as a No. 8, rather than tethered out wide, echoes Paisley’s seemingly odd – at the time - repurposing of Ray Kennedy. That switch helped Liverpool turn solidity into dominance by adding intelligence, guile, and a touch of the unexpected in midfield. Iwobi may not be Kennedy reborn, but he has the instincts to both protect structure and break it open when required.
If Fulham want to rediscover that joyful side without throwing away the stability Marco has built, it may not be about overhauling the philosophy, but about fine-tuning roles. Let the trusted midfield anchors of Berge and Lukic shoulder the ‘control’, and give Iwobi licence to roam, create, and surprise. The right balance could still be struck, and as we saw last season, the rewards could be surreal!
Good article and agree with the reply. It is really promising that we are looking more solid than before (ignoring the penalties!) and attacking fluidity comes so much from confidence/momentum sometimes.
What is also promising is that Silva clearly isn’t unaware of this problem having pushed for the winger signings and Smith Rowe last year, who with a run of games I would hope can start to unlock defences more - he also made a big impact on the Leeds game.
We all know Iwobi on form last year was our best attacker by some distance and with the new signings hopefully he won’t be relied on to play every single game at his highest level like before. Silva has time and time again found ways to make the attack work the best it can - 55,55,54 goals in the last 3 seasons with not much investment in attack compared to others - so we need to back him to do it again!
It's not the coach who creates "more creative flair", it's the players.
But we can infer things like Berge is forbidden to shoot. Would he be dropped if he disobeyed instructions?
Of course Sir Roy played a rigid system successfully but the standard of player we have now is arguably higher.
We wait and see!
Good article.
I agree and disagree with you. As mentioned in the comments, Emilie Smith Rowe (ESR) was supposed to bring flair and creativity to the attack, but he hasn't flourished yet. Maybe King can bring that in the offensive midfield.
For the two defensive midfielders (mostly Berge and Lukic), they brings stability when the fullbacks go forward and turn into wingers. Last season, that worked very well when Robinson had a great season with most touches by a fullback in the opposition's box (couldn't find the article where I read it, but here is an overview from Opta analyst dated Dec 2024): https://theanalyst.com/articles/antonee-robinson-fulham-stats-liverpool
When the fullbacks join the attack and double up on the wings like in the best matches last season, the opposition's midfield will be drawn to that side to defend and thereby creating space for players like ESR og King. This season so far, we have not had such good contributions from the fullbacks. Robinson is still recovering from his surgery this summer, so I hope that things will be better when he is 100% recovered. Sessegnon is a good player, but not at Robinson's level in the attack. Tete has had a very good season so far, but is he better at defending than attacking? (replies to this question are very welcome).
One of the question is who are joining the attack? Last season it was Robinson on almost every possible occasion. This season, the fullbacks has not joined that much. If the fullbacks are not able or willing to join the attack, one of the holding midfielders should. But I don't think Silva is willing to change his tactics yet. Getting the fullbacks forward more often is (one of) the best solution in my opinion.
As a Norwegian Fulham-supporter, I don't watch all the matches, so I don't have the same insight as others who go to all matches: I am very happy to read comments on my comment :)
Both the above and previous article about Iwobi moving into midfield are spot on I think.
The however is that Marco has moved the team into one that is difficult to score against but I think that’s only the initial part of his vision.
Having achieved that he wanted to add creativity to the team and ESR arrived last year.
What he was supposed to bring to the midfield was that bit of mercurial magic.
This time round we have two more players who are potential match winners to add to that solid structure.
ESR of course was a disastrous error but Kevin maybe not.
If the criticism is to be able to break down lesser teams again Kevin looks to be a move in the right direction.
Agree with the point about transfers but I think it is too soon to write off Smith Rowe - just because it hasn't worked fully yet doesn't mean it won't going forward