Garth Crooks slams Everton forward Alex Iowbi after defeat v West Ham
Garth Crooks has heavily criticised Alex Iowbi for his role in Michael Keane’s red card as Everton lost 2-1 against West Ham on Sunday.
It was a crushing blow for the Toffees in their fight against relegation, and once again sloppiness and individual errors have hurt the team badly.
Goals from Aaron Cresswell, who scored from a brilliant free-kick and Jarrod Bowen, sealed the win for the Hammers.
Mason Holgate restored parity after the break. They could have come away with a vital point but Iwobi’s poor touch had let the team down.
Crooks was also critical of Keane who picked up two bookings and got sent off, but he particularly reserved strong criticism for Iowbi saying an “infant” could have controlled the ball better.
“Frank Lampard’s got his work cut out here. Everton deserved to get something out of this game and would have done if not for the stupidity of Michael Keane and the incompetence of Alex Iwobi,” said Crooks in his BBC Sport column.
“If Keane stays on his feet and Iwobi controls a ball an infant could have handled, Everton would almost certainly have come away with a point.”
Dire situation
Frank Lampard said after the game (03 April) that he was happy with the overall performance of Iwobi and has urged the fans not to focus only on the negative [Liverpool Echo].
The Nigerian failed to control a simple pass and it allowed Michail Antonio to pounce on it quickly. After the initial shot was saved, Bowen was there to convert it from the rebound.
Iwobi looked sharp in the opening 20-30 minutes of the game. He made some good runs and was involved in link-up plays with Richarlison and Dominic Calvert-Lewin.
He scored the winner against Newcastle and earned his place in the starting line-up. Iwobi has only impressed in flashes ever since he joined from Arsenal, and he has failed to live up to his price tag.
The Toffees will face Burnley in their next Premier League game on Wednesday (06 April) at Turf Moor.
In other Everton news, Simon Jordan has shared a potential catastrophe waiting to happen at Goodison Park this season.
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