Arsenal and Manchester United have both been heavily linked with Viktor Gyokeres, who is expected to leave Sporting Lisbon for a new challenge in the summer transfer window
Viktor Gyokeres has been backed to thrive in the Premier League by Nani as the Sporting Lisbon hotshot continues to be sized up by Europe’s elite for a blockbuster summer transfer. Arsenal and Manchester United are among the teams interested in the Swede.
Gyokeres, 26, has been in phenomenal form since joining Sporting on a free transfer from Coventry City in the summer of 2023. And his impressive numbers – which currently stands at 85 goals from 92 games – have caught the eye elsewhere.
Arsenal were heavily linked with Gyokeres last summer and, as things stand, the striker is on their end of season wishlist. Manchester United are also admirers of Gyokeres – and managed by his former Sporting boss, Ruben Amorim – though Arsenal are seen as a more likely destination for the player.
However, United could be tempted to try and outgun their domestic rivals in the wake of a glowing scout report from Nani, who won four Premier League titles at Old Trafford during his playing days.
Speaking on the Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast, Nani said of Gyokeres: “He’s not playing the same, he’s using his qualities on the right moments now, he’s not losing energy every time. Now, he sets the ball back to the players who have to run with the ball. He controls the game for the team.
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“He’s making goals, he’s making assists, so I think he’s a player who can play in the Premier League. Trust me. If he was playing the same today as he was one year ago I would say no because, in the Premier League, the defenders will eat him because he just wants to run with the ball.
“But now, he’s playing with his head and he’s really strong. It felt like he was a rock! Powerful. I swear, I swear.”
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It’s no secret that Amorim is a big fan of Gyokeres, who he managed during his successful Sporting Lisbon tenure. And it emerged last week that the striker will be on the move this summer after reaching an agreement with his current club that he will be sold for between £50.2m-£58.5m; a figure that is significantly less than the release clause in his contract.
His national team head coach, Jon Dahl Tomasson, recently claimed Gyokeres was good enough to play for any team in the world amid the growing interest in him.
Tomasson said: “Gyokeres would be fantastic in the Premier League. He could play for any club in the world and he would score a lot of goals anywhere. Him and [Alexander] Isak are two quite different players, but they’re both world-class strikers.”
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