Alex Iwobi

Alex Iwobi Biography / Profile

Alexander Chuka Iwobi was born to Mr and Mrs Chuba Iwobi on May 3rd, 1996 in Lagos, Nigera. He is from Onitsha in Anambra State. Nicknamed Big 17, he is a professional footballer who plays as a forward for Premier League club Arsenal and the Nigerian national team.

Alex Iwobi Age

Alex Iwobi is 28 years old.

Alex Iwobi Early Life

At age 2, Iwobi's family moved to Turkey to join his mother’s relation who is former Nigerian player Austin Jay Jay Okocha. At that time, Okocha was playing at Fenabache. In 2002, when he was 4, Iwobi was taken to London by his family after his uncle relocated there to play with Bolton Wanderers. He was raised fully in an East London estate close to Bolton Wanderers. At England, he started off playing football with his friends in near by pitches close to his estate.

Iwobi signed for Arsenal while still at primary school at the tender age of eight. His signature at the club was influenced by Austin Jay Jay Okocha. He developed a life where he multi tasked between playing football and studying. His youth career time at Arsernal came at a time when the club was at the peak of English football. Things did not go well at his early start as he was close to being released by the club when he was in his early teens. His mum wasn’t proud about the performance of her son as they sent her a threatening letter of release. This shocked the family.

According to Iwobi , “Because I wasn’t as big, fast or strong as everyone else, there were question marks on me and my ability that I wasn’t imposing myself on the game as I should. It was upsetting because I was also struggling at school, I was always thinking..‘What can I do to improve?’ I would have extra sessions with my dad or friends. My mum even made me do kick-ups in the living room. My sister even tried to play football. Even my mum invited her brother Okocha and his friend Kanu would come by to have private training sessions with me. Everyone indeed, was trying to help me.”

Alex Iwobi Career

On 27 October 2015, Iwobi made his first-team debut for the club, starting in a 3–0 defeat to Sheffield Wednesday in the Round of 16 of the League Cup. He made his Premier League debut four days later in a 3–0 win against Swansea City at the Liberty Stadium, as a stoppage time substitute for Mesut Özil. Iwobi made his Champions League debut as an 85th-minute substitute in a 5–1 defeat against Bayern Munich. Iwobi started in the first team for the 2015–16 FA Cup 3rd and 4th round home wins against Sunderland and Burnley respectively.

After getting a first Champions League start in a 3–1 away defeat to Barcelona, Iwobi went on to score two goals in his first two Premier League starts in wins against Everton, and Watford, respectively. In the following season Iwobi changed his squad number from 45 to 17. This was due to Chilean forward Alexis Sánchez taking up the newly vacated number 7 from the departing Tomáš Rosický. Iwobi went on to feature throughout Arsenal's victorious FA Cup campaign of 2016–17. As so he earned a winners medal as being part of the squad that beat Chelsea by 2 goals to 1 in the final of such. He achieved further success with Arsenal in the 2017 Community Shield, in which Arsenal beat Chelsea on penalties. In January 2018 a video allegedly showing Iwobi at a late-night party the day before a match was released.

Iwobi started as a youth international for England, with whom he won the Victory Shield of 2011. He went on though to play for Nigeria. He made his senior debut for the Super Eagles on 8 October 2015, replacing Ahmed Musa in the 57th minute of a 2–0 friendly defeat to DR Congo in Visé, Belgium. He was selected by Nigeria for their 35-man provisional squad for the 2016 Summer Olympics. He was not a part of the 18-man final squad. In August 2017 Iwobi pulled out of Nigeria's squad for that month's World Cup qualifiers due to injury. On 7 October 2017, Iwobi scored for Nigeria in a 1–0 win over Zambia to secure the Super Eagles a spot in the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.

Alex Iwobi Personal Life

Alex Iwobi’s father, Chuba Iwobi was a footballer who abandoned his low paying amature football career to study law in order to care for his family and assure a long term future for them. His mother is also of Nigerian by origin. She is the sister of Austin Jay Jay Okocha. He is very close to his sister, Marie.

Iwobi was been in a relationship with girlfriend Clarisse Juliette who is a UK based model and broke up with her on his 21st birthday. She labelled Iwobi ‘a cheater’ due to his alleged infidelity.

Iwobi does not speak Nigerian Igbo language but understands the language. He also understands the Nigerian Yoruba language He however speaks good Pidgin English and uses it to communicate with his Nigerian friends. His favorite food is okra soup, eba and stew fish.

He is best mates with former Arsenal teammate Tyrell Robinson and fellow Nigerian international Kelechi Iheanacho.