Super Eagles’ Iwobi breaks curse in Fulham’s win against Luton Town

Super Eagles forward Alex Iwobi has finally won a game on his debut after Fulham’s 1-0 win over Luton Town in a Premier League fixture at the Craven Cottage on Saturday.

The 27-year-old made a switch from Merseyside to London on the final day of the summer transfer window, having spent the last five years at Everton.

But a hamstring injury he suffered in Everton’s 4-0 defeat away at Aston Villa, in what was his last game for the Toffees, had to delay his debut appearance for Fulham.

Iwobi finally got the chance to put on his new club jersey in a Premier League game on Saturday, coming on in the 62nd minute to replace Harrison Reed. His presence would prove lucky as Carlos Vinicius struck three minutes after his introduction to hand Fulham their second win of the season.

For Iwobi to have ended up on the winning side in his debut appearance for the Cottagers, it was the first time in his professional career that he ended up on the winning side for a new team.

Having come through Arsenal’s youth system, Iwobi was first involved in a first-team match as an unused substitute in a League Cup match against West Bromwich Albion on 25 September 2013.

In what was his maiden first-team appearance, Iwobi suffered a 2-0 defeat with the Super Eagles in a friendly game against the Democratic Republic of Congo on 8 October 2015, coming on to replace Ahmed Musa in the 57th minute.

On 27 October 2015, he made his first team appearance for Arsenal in a 3-0 defeat to Sheffield Wednesday in the League Cup.

Iwobi did not fare better on his Everton debut, coming on to replace Gylfi Sigurdsson in a 2-0 loss at Aston Villa.

The 27-year-old will be aiming to return to the Super Eagles squad for their friendly game against Saudi Arabia next month, having missed out on the team that beat minnows Sao Tome and Principe 6-0 a week ago.