Super Eagles player Alex Iwobi hits back at fans shocked by his defensive pivot against Chelsea — ‘Not to worry, I’m still a midfielder!’

Super Eagles playmaker Alex Iwobi wants everyone to lower their heart rates, he hasn't suddenly morphed into a full-time defender. 

The versatile Fulham midfielder found himself at the centre of a social media debate after putting in a surprisingly deep defensive shift during the club's intense Premier League opener against Chelsea. 

Playing inside a double pivot, Iwobi spent a significant chunk of the match sitting much lower on the pitch than usual. 

The deep positioning completely caught fans off guard, prompting a flood of bewildered questions on his Threads account. 

One shocked supporter bluntly asked, “how did you turn a defender all of a sudden?” while another chimed in, “with all the sweet killer passes you have… I want to believe it’s just a one time thing.” 

Iwobi laughed off the panic, firing back with a reassuring: “No O I’m Still A Midfielder! Not To Worry, I’m Still A Midfielder!”

While fans might have been anxious to see the creative playmaker sitting so close to his own box, the raw data shows he absolutely bossed the deeper role. 

Against Chelsea's multi-million dollar midfield, Iwobi pulled the strings for the Cottagers, completing the most passes on the pitch with 83. 

He also unlocked the defence with 21 line-breaking passes and slid 10 balls directly into the final third. 

But it was his work rate off the ball that had people mistaking him for a centre-back; the Nigerian international put in a massive defensive shift, racking up three interceptions, six recoveries, and one tackle to protect the backline.

Reflecting on the match and his grueling performance on his official YouTube vlog, Iwobi emphasised that the squad ran their socks off despite a frustrating start to the campaign. 

"Obviously, tough game against Chelsea. Not the result we wanted to start the season, but we can take the positives," Iwobi shared. 

"It was a good game, we put in a shift covering most distance in the Prem game week one, created some chances. We personally feel like we deserved more from the game." 

Following a subsequent 1-0 defeat to Sunderland, Iwobi knows that the honeymoon phase of looking good without points is officially over ahead of their Saturday clash against Crystal Palace. 

"Nowadays, it don’t even matter per performance, you have to just get results," he added. "But obviously performance can kind of point us in the right direction... we proved to ourselves that we can compete with one of the best teams in the league. So, a stepping stone to keep moving."