Frank Lampard has admitted he 'loved' Alex Iwobi's claim this week that he feels 'almost unstoppable' on current form.
The Nigerian midfielder is enjoying the form of his life under Lampard, building on the energy and versatility that proved priceless to last season's relegation survival. The last few months have seen the 26-year-old deployed into a more natural central midfield role, where his intelligence and creativity has provided balance alongside Amadou Onana and Idrissa Gueye.
As each week passes the growth in Iwobi's confidence becomes clearer, and moments like the flick that set up Dwight McNeil in the 3-0 win against Crystal Palace, or the early opener against Manchester United, give an idea of the freedom that the former Arsenal man is now enjoying on Merseyside. Such is the current level of self-belief, that the Everton man admitted earlier this week that at times he feels 'almost unstoppable'.
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Lampard saw those comments from his once-maligned midfielder, and admitted he 'loved' to see such confidence - especially for a player who is usually so humble.
"I saw that comment and I loved it because I know he has a huge amount of humility, so it's not a comment that can be taken in the wrong way," Lampard told Sky Sports .
"When I saw his qualities he had been showing on the wing or at wing-back in my early days here, I thought we could use him more in midfield as the energy and qualities were a big plus for us. He moved in there and I felt straight away that he looked better to me and this season, I started him with a real idea that he would be playing in a more central role.
"I think it suits him being central with the movements and passes he can make where he can go by people both ways in the middle, which is not always the case with midfielders in terms of travelling really quickly and having boundless energy centrally."
Iwobi has blossomed since moving centrally, with the Everton man finally trusted in his favoured position. After several season's pushed wide for Arsenal, and a few months last season when it was 'needs must' at wing-back, an extended period in his natural role has allowed consistency and liberation.
And Lampard added that, rather than having to spend more time on helping a player change roles, Iwobi's move to midfield came almost seamlessly.
"Sometimes you have to convince players but this was his preferred role and I can understand why," Lampard said. "So it's been a nice joining of my idea with what he wants as well.
"He's a very intelligent player so sometimes you don't have to tell him too much. But while it's my job to coach him through it, and I do have personal moments with him, it's about the structure of the team and him understanding his role within that. For a player of Alex's intelligence and quality, it's down to him.
"For me, these are the rules of football: you need the talent, which he has, you work really hard, you're a great team-mate and do all the right things and hopefully you can express yourself. Long may it continue with Alex."
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