By Monsurah Olatunji
Nigeria international Alex Iwobi delivered a brilliant performance for Fulham, scoring two vital goals in their 3-1 Premier League win against Brighton & Hove Albion on Thursday night at Craven Cottage.
The Super Eagles midfielder wasted no time, opening the scoring in the fourth minute after capitalizing on a blunder from Brighton’s goalkeeper. However, the visitors responded in the second half, with Carlos Baleba scoring the equalizer in the 56th minute.
Fulham regained the lead in the 79th minute, when a corner from Andreas Pereira deflected off Brighton’s Matt O’Riley into his own net. Iwobi then sealed the win for the hosts, scoring a composed finish from the edge of the box in the 87th minute to make it 3-1 and cap off a superb man-of-the-match display.
This brace was especially significant for Iwobi, as he has already matched his goal tally from last season, having scored five goals and registered two assists in 30 games for Fulham. The 28-year-old now has five goals and three assists in just 14 league appearances this season.
Notably, Iwobi’s brace marked just the second time in his 267 Premier League appearances for Arsenal, Everton, and Fulham that he has scored twice in a match, according to Opta Jose.
Samuel Ahmadu is a distinguished multimedia journalist and women's football expert with over 15 years of experience in the industry. He began his career at Goal.com in February 2014, where he served as an African women's football correspondent for nearly eight years. During his tenure at Goal.com, Samuel covered major events such as three Women's Africa Cup of Nations (2016, 2018, 2022) and the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada plus 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. His work at Goal.com earned him widespread acclaim, particularly for his in-depth profiles of African football stars, notably Asisat Oshoala, whose rise he documented from her early years to her breakthrough at the FIFA U20 Women's World Cup in 2014. Prior to his role at Goal.com, Samuel freelanced for various print and broadcast media outlets in Nigeria, including Graphics Newspaper, Radio Nigeria, Grace FM, and Savid Newspaper. His extensive experience and expertise led to his appointment to the Nigeria Football Federation's Standing Committee on Women's Football Development from 2016 to 2018. Since February 2018, Samuel has been the Social Media Manager for Nigeria's women's national teams.In 2019, Samuel joined the Confederation of African Football (CAF) as a women's football content contributor and was promoted to Women's Football Editor in 2021. His contributions to women's football continued as he worked as a Media Consultant for Content Creation and Editorials at the 2022 CAF Women's Champions League. Currently, Samuel also serves as the spokesman for the Nigeria Women Football League, further solidifying his influence and dedication to the growth of women's football in Africa.
