Fulham star Alex Iwobi has revealed his determination to surpass Kolo Toure’s Premier League appearance record after moving ahead of Liverpool legend Mohamed Salah.
The Nigerian international achieved the milestone in the Cottagers’ 1-1 draw against Aston Villa, taking his tally to 329 appearances in the ranking, one ahead of the Egyptian forward.
Even at the achievement, the former Arsenal and Everton man claims he is far from satisfied, with his sights set on eclipsing the Ivorian who represented Arsenal, Manchester City and Liverpool.
While welcoming his personal landmark, the 30-year-old made it clear that he is keen on achieving even greater milestones.
“Yeah, of course. I mean, it’s hard for me to just cherish the memories that I’ve made in the past. I like to keep on looking ahead,” Iwobi told Fulham media.
“So, it’s a nice little stat to have. But I’m trying to break the record. I think Kolo Toure is up there. So, I keep my eyes going forward and see if I can break that.”
Having previously played for Arsenal between 2015 and 2019 and spent four seasons at Everton, the Nigerian has established himself as a key figure at Fulham since joining the club in September 2023.
Fulham rue missed chances in Aston Villa stalemate
Reflecting on his team’s performance at Aston Villa, Iwobi admitted that his teammates were frustrated not to secure maximum points despite initially viewing a draw as a satisfactory outcome.
The London club produced an encouraging second-half display and created several opportunities but ultimately had to settle for a share of the spoils.
“We are happy, of course, because it was difficult. At the start of the game, we would have taken a point but considering how the second half went and how we feel our performance was going; we thought that maybe we deserved three points,” he explained.
“But if you could give us a point at the start of the game, we would have taken it, but we’re kind of disappointed not to take all three.”
The Super Eagle also acknowledged his own missed opportunities, admitting that he should have found the net during the contest.
“I mean, we created so many chances. Even me, I should have scored as well,” Iwobi added.
“But yeah, it is something we were working on in training, we’re always doing finishing, so hopefully that luck will come and we’ll start scoring more goals.”
Iwobi also provided an insight into Fulham’s equaliser, revealing that he was convinced the ball had crossed the line but feared the goal might be disallowed following an incident involving the goalkeeper.
“From my angle, because obviously I was the one out of the corner, I could see it’s gone over the line. But then Shea (Charles) said he’s grabbed the keeper, so I was like, oh no,” he recalled.
“Because you know sometimes our luck hasn’t been going for us and they’ll probably say it’s a free kick or something, but the luck was on our side and it was a goal.”
He believes the Cottagers’ recent performances demonstrate that their hard work is beginning to pay off, with the club now enjoying a three-match unbeaten run in the Premier League.
“If you keep on working hard, luck will eventually go your way,” he added.
“We feel like recently this season we’ve been performing really well in most of our games. So, it’s only a matter of time until the reward comes our way. So yeah, we just have to keep this momentum going.”
Iwobi: Bassey’s best years are still ahead
Beyond his personal milestone, Iwobi reserved special praise for compatriot Calvin Bassey, who was named Premier League Man of the Match following an impressive defensive display against Aston Villa.
The 30-year-old expressed his admiration for the centre-back’s consistency and believes the former Ajax defender has the potential to develop into one of the game’s leading players in his position.
“He’s a loud character on and off the pitch. And we’re enjoying him. We’re enjoying him. His performances have been really good this season. Solid centre-back,” Iwobi said.
“But we’ve always seen the talent and we’re happy that he’s doing it consistently for not just the club, but for the country as well.
“I’m proud to have him in the Nigerian national team. But he’s still young for a centre-back. He’s very young. He’s got a lot more years to come.
“And yeah, if he keeps it going, you never know where he can be. So, I’m just proud of him and hope he keeps it going.”
Following the result, Fulham sit 15th in the Premier League table with nine points from nine matches and will look to build on their performance when they host Newcastle United on November 7th.