Viktor Gyokeres has not always been obviously destined for greatness.
“When I took him to Bromma, he was 14 and the head of the academy said he wasn’t good enough,” David Eklund, a scout at Gyokeres’ first Swedish club, told the BBC.
Even after moving to Coventry City in January 2021, the Championship side’s assistant coach Adi Viveash revealed extensive doubts about the misfiring striker. “For me,” he told the Coventry Telegraph, “it was a little bit of, ‘will he get to that level?'”
However, Gyokeres has exploded over the last 18 months, lighting up the Portuguese top flight at Sporting CP. A Champions League hat-trick against Manchester City rammed home the 26-year-old’s quality to a wider audience, but several clubs from across Europe have been interested in Gyokeres for a while now.
Liverpool are still feeling the consequences of splashing the cash on a prolific striker ripping up the Portuguese top flight. Darwin Nunez is yet to replicate a red-hot burst of form at Benfica which convinced Liverpool to part ways with as much as £85m in 2022.
Arne Slot was not at the club when Nunez arrived and was only allowed to spend £10m on outfield players during his first summer on Merseyside. There have been tenuous links with Gyokeres although those whispers could grow in volume if a non-committal Mohamed Salah opens up a slot in Liverpool’s forward line this summer.
When Gyokeres’ agent Hasan Cetinkaya took his client to Sporting in 2023, he told manager Ruben Amorim: “Here is my boy, he came to Sporting because of you.”
Gyokeres has been full of praise for the influential Portuguese coach who is heading to Manchester United in November. The avenue to Old Trafford seems clear but recent reports have suggested that the Sweden international “turns his nose up” at the idea of joining United.
Can you ever have too many strikers? Paris Saint-Germain may try and find out if they follow through on their interest of Gyokeres this summer.
The French free-spenders splashed more than £130m on Randal Kolo Muani and Goncalo Ramos in the same summer of 2023. Neither have overly impressed and the Portuguese forward has missed the first three months of the season with an ankle injury.
Chelsea’s urge to splurge in the transfer market should never be underestimated. The Blues spent most of last summer trailing Victor Osimhen and are thought to remain interested in a new number nine despite Nicolas Jackson’s prolific start to the season.
Gyokeres offers the same direct threat as Jackson but has shown a more sustained record of consistent finishing than the Senegal international.
Robert Lewandowski has rediscovered his best form under Hansi Flick this term but time waits for no player. The Pole turns 37 at the start of next season and is a decade older than Gyokeres.
If the striker’s €100m (£84m) release clause has been lowered as per numerous reports, Barcelona would be in a better position to find the funds to bring in a goal machine of the future.
Arsenal‘s strategy for the coming transfer windows has been thrown into disarray by the surprise exit of sporting director Edu. Mikel Arteta’s influence will likely fill the void until a replacement can be found and an orthodox striker could be high on his wishlist.
Gyokeres was repeatedly linked with a move to north London last summer and Arsenal’s struggles in front of goal have only been exacerbated this term.
