Iwobi: ‘We Had to Get These Three Points’ After Fulham Victory

Alex Iwobi expressed his delight after scoring Fulham’s decisive third goal in their 3-1 Premier League victory over Sunderland at the Stadium of Light.

The Nigerian international sealed the win with five minutes remaining, finishing from a tight angle after Harry Wilson’s surging run and precise pass set up a swift counterattack.

Speaking to Sky Sports, Iwobi said: ‘We knew it was going to be difficult; the pitch wasn’t great. We know if we wanted to climb up the table we had to get these points away from home.

‘They have been very good at home and it’s good to get the result we wanted. We take it step by step. Onto the next game, we got the three points which was the aim, to climb above them. We take it game by game, that cliché saying, and see where we end up at the end of the season.’

Iwobi also praised Wilson’s composure in the build-up to his goal: ‘When H [Harry Wilson] was on the ball, it was just me and Oscar running up the pitch. We’ve been working on this in training, in transition.

‘Somehow H had the composure to find me, I saw where the goalkeeper was positioned and the only place to finish was over his foot. Credit to H, and to us for getting the three points.’

The 29-year-old midfielder had earlier provided the assist for Fulham’s opener, with his corner headed in by Raul Jiménez.

It marked the third time in his career that Iwobi has both scored and assisted in a Premier League fixture, having previously achieved the feat against Liverpool and Brentford last year.

Iwobi’s performance carried personal significance as well, marking his 249th Premier League start and 312th appearance since debuting in 2015. He now has 34 goals and 38 assists in the competition and is closing in on becoming the first Nigerian player to complete 10,000 passes in the Premier League, currently sitting at 9,974 with an 82 percent completion rate.

On Fulham’s European ambitions, Iwobi added: ‘We take it step-by-step, we got the three points, and that was the aim, to climb above them. We’ll see where it is at the end of the season.’