Josh King claims Arsenal sold the smartest player in the Premier League

Josh King is one of the most exciting young players in the Premier League right now.

The 19-year-old has been outstanding for Fulham, attracting interest from Arsenal and several other top clubs in the process. He was probably a bit unlucky not to be included in the latest England squad, especially considering Eberechi Eze made the cut, despite not delivering so far this season.

King recently sat down with the Premier League’s official media for a Q&A on TikTok, and one answer in particular will be of interest to Arsenal fans.

Josh King names Alex Iwobi as the Premier League’s smartest player

Asked which player in the Premier League has the highest football IQ, King named his Fulham teammate Alex Iwobi.

The Arsenal academy graduate has quietly built one of the most consistent careers of any player in the league. He recently became only the fifth player in Premier League history to make 100 or more appearances for three different clubs, joining Gary Speed, Rory Delap, Gareth Barry and James Milner, and becoming the first African player to achieve the feat.

Every manager he has worked under has fully trusted him, and that’s largely because his reading of the game is exceptional. From academy winger at Arsenal, to box-to-box midfielder at Everton under Frank Lampard, to one of Fulham’s most creative players under Marco Silva and now Alvaro Arbeloa. He reinvents himself wherever he goes.

Actually, he’s probably the kind of player Mikel Arteta would have loved. The Nigerian is really intelligent but is also technically really neat and is always available. He also works his socks off. Had he still been at Arsenal when Arteta took over in December 2019, it’s hard not to think he would have thrived under the Spaniard.

Instead, he left for Everton months before Arteta arrived, sold for an initial £28million as part of the funding for Nicolas Pepe — a deal that didn’t exactly go to plan.