Alex Iwobi: Super Eagles star breaks silence on poor performance at AFCON

Super Eagles midfielder Alex Iwobi has offered some insights on his poor outing at the just ended African Cup of Nations in Ivory Coast.

Despite putting up a impressive performance from the group stages all the way to the grand finale, the Super Eagles failed to jump the last hurdle as José Peseiro's side stumbled with 2-1 loss to hosts Ivory Coast in final.

William Troost-Ekong's thumping header in the first half was cancelled out by former Barcelona and AC Milan ace Franck Kessie before Borussia Dortmund's Sebastien Haller netted the winner for the hosts in the second half.

A number of Super Eagles stars came under harsh criticism for their underwhelming performance in the game. Notably among the players that were targeted was Fulham's Alex Iwobi.

Offering some explanations on what accounted for his below par performance at the premier African football tournament, the 27-year-old pointed out that he was playing according to the role assigned to him by coach José Peseiro.

He also highlighted the harsh weather conditions in Ivory Coast as a factor for his average performance.

"Playing a game every four days in those conditions doesn't help. It's not an excuse, but playing in such circumstances... And the specific role I was assigned alongside Frank [Onyeka] focused heavily on second balls, runs, and ball retention," the former Arsenal mad said on his YouTube channel, Project 17.

"While everyone expected creativity from me, I was instructed to maintain possession, manage the game, and facilitate ball movement from flank to flank.

"We had wing-backs capable of providing width, and players like Ademola Lookman, Samuel Chukwueze, and Moses Simon who could create opportunities. Victor (Osimhen) is a lethal goal-scorer. Frank and I were tasked with controlling the tempo."

Iwobi is expected to be in action on Friday, March 22 when Nigeria take on Ghana in a friendly at the Stade de Grande in Marrakech, Morocco.

WDN