Alex Iwobi pre-season training won over Rafa Benitez
Rafa Benitez was impressed with Alex Iwobi’s pre-season training displays which convinced him to keep him at Everton, per The Liverpool Echo.
The 25-year-old did not set the world alight in the pre-season friendlies, but impressed Benitez off the pitch, which saw him go against the common belief and give the attacker a chance to thrive at Goodison Park.
He trusted his instincts and decided that his training performances merited a spot in the first team and thus opted against selling him this summer.
The Echo report reads, “Rafa Benitez, installed as Everton’s new manager at the end of June, was impressed with what Iwobi was producing in those early sessions at Finch Farm.
“Sources were saying that of the first batch of players to return to pre-season training in July, the attacker was the quickest, most powerful and liveliest.
“Benitez could, so easily, have put the 25-year-old up for sale this summer. He could have listened to the negative noise around Iwobi’s time at Everton and decided it was time for a clean break.”
Right move?
Everton were in a bit of a bother financially so even if they wanted to sell Iwobi, signing a replacement good enough for the first team would have been a challenge if he was sold for a relatively low transfer fee.
Iwobi is a player who has impressed past managers as well, so Benitez needs to get a tune out of him in a way that he performs consistently week in and week out.
Carlo Ancelotti also liked what he saw of him and did not consider the idea of selling him last summer.
Even Marco Silva was impressed by the exploits of Iwobi in training – suggesting that his performances on matchdays needed to improve.
Thus far, he’s done well at the start of this season, but needs to show more of it in the coming months.
At 25, he still has his best days ahead of him, and the Spaniard could be the ideal manager to bring the best out of him.
In other Everton news, ‘Tend to struggle’ – Paul Merson predicts scoreline of Toffees clash v Burnley
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