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Nigeria's Alex Iwobi scored the all-important goal as Fulham bounced back from the defeat against Manchester United with a victory over Leicester City.
Super Eagles midfielder Alex Iwobi is back in goalscoring form, as his 70th-minute strike turned out to be the winning goal in Fulham's victory over newly promoted Leicester City.
Having suffered a disappointing defeat at Old Trafford to a late Joshua Zirkzee strike last week, Marco Silva's men were determined to get their first point(s) on the board in their first game of the season at Craven's Cottage as they faced a Leicester City team buoyed by an important draw at the Kings Power.
Emile Smith Rowe's goal helped Fulham race to the lead, but Wout Faes restored parity before Iwobi's 70th-minute strike sealed the tie in the home side's favour.
Key match details
The game took a bit to get going, but the hosts soon assumed a position of dominance and consequently created a bucketload of chances. They were unable to capitalise on the early wave, however, before Leicester found their footing.
Ironically, Fulham got the opener in Leicester’s period of dominance, thanks to a sweeping counterattacking move.
Adama Traore dribbled through the central areas of the pitch before releasing Smith-Rowe. The former Arsenal man took the ball in his stride before completing an emphatic weak-foot finish past Mads Hermansen.
Twenty minutes after the opener, Leicester found parity. Centre-back Faes was left unattended in the box. He rose highest to connect with Facundo Buonanotte’s delivery from the corner flank before sending the ball home with a thumping downward header.
Upon resumption from the first-half break, Silva’s side, buoyed by the home crowd, created chance after chance in their bid to restore their lead. They had to wait until the 70th minute, however, when Iwobi fired them 2-1 ahead.
The Nigerian was released into space by full-back Antonee Robinson. He made the yards before emulating Smith-Rowe in finishing with his weaker foot to give his side the lead. Leicester attempted a last hurrah, but their late flurry of attacks failed to bear fruit, as Fulham clinched their first victory of the 2024/25 Premier League campaign, thanks to Alex Iwobi.
Key stats of the Nigerians on show
Aside from his well-taken strike in the 70th minute, Iwobi had an underwhelming game stats-wise. He lost possession 18 times, failed to win any of his six duels, and did not manage to complete a single dribble.
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His teammate and compatriot, Calvin Bassey, did not let sparks fly either, but he was decent. He won one of his five aerial duels, blocked one shot, and did not manage a tackle or interception. On the ball, however, Bassey was integral to Fulham’s ball progression. He had 80 touches, recorded 90% accuracy on 72 attempted passes, four of which were long balls, and won one foul.
On the losing team was Wilfred Ndidi, who was an engine for the Foxes as usual. He won six duels and three tackles. He made two clearances and blocked one shot.
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