Viktor Gyokeres’ former manager gives honest verdict on £63.7m Arsenal transfer

Sweden international striker traded Sporting CP for Arsenal this summer in one of the most expensive transfer deals of the window and the Portuguese club’s manager has spoken

Sporting manager Rui Borges says the club will “always be grateful” to Viktor Gyokeres after the striker’s departure. Gyokeres, who fired Sporting to back-to-back titles, moved to Arsenal in a £63.7million switch after a summer of negotiations.

Gyokeres had never scored a top-flight goal when he joined Sporting from Coventry in 2023. However, in two years in the Portuguese Primeira Liga, he netted 68 times in just 66 appearances.

Sporting have already identified the Swede’s successor, bringing in former Watford striker Luis Suarez. Borges has praised the Colombian, an arrival from Almeria, but was keen to recognise the contribution of the man who has moved on.

“He’s a player who defined an era at Sporting and in Portuguese football, but unfortunately, he’s gone,” Borges told Sport TV (via Goal) in his first comments about Gyokeres since the player’s exit. “He was important in the last two seasons at Sporting, and we’ll always be very grateful, but we’re already in a different phase.

“We’ll reinvent ourselves with what we have and with the new players to remain strong. Great players have passed through Sporting; everyone comes and goes, but the club retains its greatness and demands. We’re already looking at a different path, with a different way of being and thinking, always striving to be competitive and victorious.”

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Colombia international Suarez, like Gyokeres, moves to Lisbon after a hot season in a second-tier league. He bagged 27 goals in 41 games for Almeria last term, helping his team reach the promotion play-offs where they lost to Oviedo in the semi-finals.

The striker spent three years on Watford’s books without ever making a senior appearance. A 19-goal season on loan at Zaragoza earned him a move to La Liga side Granada, though, while he also had a short stint in France with Marseille.

Gyokeres, meanwhile, could make his first competitive Arsenal appearance against his former Sporting manager Ruben Amorim. The Gunners kick off their Premier League campaign against Amorim’s Manchester United, though both teams have pre-season games to come before then.

“I always want to score,” the striker said upon signing for Arsenal. “To be a part of this club and to score in this kit and with this badge in front of all the supporters, I can’t wait. It will be an amazing feeling.

“I started here [in England], it feels like a long time ago. I think I’ve improved a lot since then. Now I want to prove myself for real and perform together with the team.”

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