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‘He's just dumbbells with legs' – Alex Iwobi doesn't hesitate when naming who would win a Premier League Royal Rumble

‘He's just dumbbells with legs' – Alex Iwobi doesn't hesitate when naming who would win a Premier League Royal Rumble

Scottish Sun25-06-2025
ALEX IWOBI had no doubts over who would win a Premier League Royal Rumble.
The Fulham winger, 29, acted as referee when team-mates Adama Traore and Calvin Bassey wrestled in the dressing room.
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Alex Iwobi reckons he knows would win a Premier League Royal Rumble
Credit: Reuters
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Pals Calvin Bassey and Adama Traore wrestled at the training ground
Credit: X
Traore came out on top to claim the bragging rights at Craven Cottage, twice pinning the centre-back down on the ground.
And Iwobi reckons any challenger from across England's top flight would suffer the same fate against the Spanish speed machine.
A laughing Iwobi told SunSport: 'I don't see anyone defeating Adama Traore.
'That guy is brick.
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'He's just dumbbells with legs.
'He's too strong. He's too, too strong.'
The wrestling clips received a mixed reaction from Fulham fans - some worrying about the risk of injury and not focusing on football, others pleased to see the players enjoying themselves behind the scenes.
While Jay-Jay Okocha's nephew Iwobi understands the concerns, he very much falls in the latter category and believes the fun is testament to the close bond between Marco Silva's squad - one of the secrets to their success.
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The ex-Arsenal man in particular - one of a number of former Emirates stars at Craven Cottage - enjoyed the best season of his career last term, with nine goals and six assists.
And he reckons there is a direct correlation between his mood away from the pitch and his performances on it.
Watch Adama Traore race kids in car park as Wolves star takes time out to make their day Inbox
Iwobi - whose Project 17 charity hosted their P17 football tournament on Sunday raising awareness for ACLT, a life-saving organisation working to increase the number of blood, stem cell and organ donors from the black community - added: 'If I'm happy off the pitch, I seem to do well on the pitch.
'When I'm given that freedom to express myself and be myself, then that's when they're going to get the best version out of me on the pitch.
'You'd be surprised, a lot of footballers are fun. It's just that they don't want to show that side to them. But with me, I'm not afraid to show that side.
'With Calvin and Adama having a bit of a wrestling match, maybe I shouldn't have showcased that because they might have got hurt and it's like, 'Well, you shouldn't have been doing that in the first place.'
'But it just shows we are big kids. We like to enjoy it.
'I just want people to understand that we're not just robots, we're not just footballers, we're actually brothers as well, everyone is really close with each other.
'In our team, there's no egos. Everyone's willing to work for each other. I think that's a big part of why we play so well, especially as we do activities outside the training ground, like when Marco had a family barbecue.
'And the Brazilians like Rodrigo Muniz and Andreas Pereira put on Brazilian music, then you see Antonee Robinson and Calvin doing little dances and all the English boys would be singing along to the Brazilian music.
'We are one big family. All cultures come into one and we appreciate each culture. It's literally so nice to see.'
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Traore came out on top against the defender
Credit: X
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Muscle-machine Traore gets Iwobi's backing
Credit: Rex
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Iwobi described Fulham as a 'brotherhood'
Credit: Getty
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Diogo Jota and Andre Silva's tragic deaths show sport is nothing more than a joyful distraction from what truly matters
Diogo Jota and Andre Silva's tragic deaths show sport is nothing more than a joyful distraction from what truly matters

Scottish Sun

time5 hours ago

  • Scottish Sun

Diogo Jota and Andre Silva's tragic deaths show sport is nothing more than a joyful distraction from what truly matters

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Brit Wimbledon star Neal Skupski, 35, finds out his grandmother has died just minutes after leaving court
Brit Wimbledon star Neal Skupski, 35, finds out his grandmother has died just minutes after leaving court

Scottish Sun

time5 hours ago

  • Scottish Sun

Brit Wimbledon star Neal Skupski, 35, finds out his grandmother has died just minutes after leaving court

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Liverpool's tribute to Diogo Jota in full: Reds hail ‘truly clutch figure' following forward's heartbreaking death
Liverpool's tribute to Diogo Jota in full: Reds hail ‘truly clutch figure' following forward's heartbreaking death

Scottish Sun

time6 hours ago

  • Scottish Sun

Liverpool's tribute to Diogo Jota in full: Reds hail ‘truly clutch figure' following forward's heartbreaking death

Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) LIVERPOOL have led tributes following the tragic death of Diogo Jota. The 28-year-old died in a car crash while driving through Zamora, Spain, in a Lamborghini when a tyre suddenly burst and sent the car veering off the road before igniting into flames. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 3 Liverpool have paid tribute following the tragic death of Diogo Jota Credit: Reuters 3 The club described him as a truly clutch figure' Credit: Reuters The horrific incident killed both Jota and his younger brother, 25-year-old André Silva, who played for Portuguese second-tier club Penafiel. Jota is survived by his childhood sweetheart, Rute, whom he had married only 10 days earlier, and three children. Tributes and well-wishes poured in from all over the world since the heartbreaking news came to light. This included team-mates and managers, past and present, and numerous celebrities and prominent figures. On Thursday evening, Liverpool themselves posted a lengthy homage to the late attacker, describing him as a "truly clutch figure" before announcing they would "immortalise" his No20 shirt number. The club's statement, which recounted his career with the Anfield outfit said: "'He will take us to victory,' sang the Liverpool fans in his honour – and Diogo Jota so often did exactly that. "The Portugal forward, who has tragically passed away in a road traffic accident at the age of 28, was a truly clutch figure for the Reds, in just the right place when his team needed his finishing knack. "He arrived at Anfield in September 2020, enhancing the new Premier League champions' attacking ranks by making the switch from Wolverhampton Wanderers. "Jota's career had started out in his home country at Pacos de Ferreira and a senior debut in 2014 kicked off a rise to glory in the club and international game. "Signed by Atletico Madrid in 2016, he would not actually appear for the Spanish side, instead enjoying a productive next campaign on loan at FC Porto, honing his scoring skills and gaining Champions League experience. Portugal manager in tears as fans hold up Diogo Jota pictures during Women's Euro minute's silence for Liverpool "Another loan, this time to Wolves, beckoned and Jota was a key protagonist in firing the Midlands outfit out of the Championship with 17 goals during 2017-18. "Capable of playing across all attacking positions, his work-rate and nimbleness enabled him to foil defenders in all kinds of ways, and those talents were successfully transferred permanently to the Premier League. "Back-to-back seventh-placed finishes for Wolves in England's top flight came alongside a run to the Europa League last eight in 2019-20 that saw Jota score nine times. "Liverpool then swooped to recruit him and despite the unenviable challenge of forcing his way into a front line already composed of Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah, his impact was quick and considerable. "Indeed, Jota reached double figures for goals by his 21st Reds appearance, a tally that included a scintillating hat-trick away at Atalanta in the Champions League. "An untimely injury prevented him from continuing that start but he returned to clinical effect, racking up 21 strikes in all competitions as Jürgen Klopp's side almost achieved a quadruple in 2021-22, lifting the Carabao Cup and Emirates FA Cup. "'The slotter' was vital to those triumphs, a brilliant cameo against Leicester City in the quarter-finals of the former followed with a tie-deciding double at Arsenal in the semi-finals, while there was an FA Cup winner in the last eight versus Nottingham Forest. "Though fitness misfortunes prevented Jota from always being able to feature in the seasons that followed, he continued to tot up goals and assists for the cause, relied upon by Klopp and his successor, Arne Slot. "A cool head on the pitch – just remember his 94th-minute Anfield decider against Tottenham Hotspur in April 2023 – and a respected and much-loved team-mate off it. "What cruelly has proved to be his final flourish in football saw Jota become a Premier League champion and a UEFA Nations League winner. "The No.20 will be rightly immortalised for his contributions as part of Liverpool's 2024-25 title-winners – the club's 20th – with his trademark shimmy and strike in front of the Kop to seal victory in April's Merseyside derby a poignant last goal of his life. "To arrive at this particular season with the title that I've been chasing for a lot of years and in the best league in the world – for me where I dreamed to play as a kid – it's a moment I will cherish forever,' he said. "It is a remarkable achievement for a small guy that came from Gondomar, where I had this dream. To arrive at this moment was outstanding.' "More joy and special moments followed just last month as Portugal – Jota represented his country 49 times and 14 of his overall senior total of 150 goals came in internationals – lifted the Nations League trophy. "And he then celebrated marriage to wife Rute, with whom he had three children, on June 22. "'His name is Diogo,' rang the chorus of that very own supporter chant. And we'll never forget it. RIP Diogo Jota, 1996-2025." Jota's and Silva's funerals will be in their hometown of Gondomar near the Portuguese city of Porto. Local priest Jose Manuel Macedo initially announced the ceremonies would take place at 4pm on Friday before confirming they had been rescheduled to Saturday morning. Father Macedo said a wake would take place at Sao Cosme Chapel before the funeral mass on Saturday morning at the Catholic church next door - the Igreja Matriz de Gondomar.

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