Multiple contributorsJul 26, 2025, 03:02 PM ET
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Viktor Gyökereshas gone fromChampionshipflop to one of Europe’s most in-form strikers in the space of just three years. Having struggled for most of his career, theSwedenstriker scored 97 goals in 102 games for Portuguese clubSporting CPsince moving fromCoventry Cityfor €20 million in July 2023, which was enough to persuadeArsenalto part with €63m (plus a potential €10m in add-ons) to bring him to thePremier Leaguethis summer.
-Finally! Arsenal get Gyökeres from Sporting CP-Why did Gyökeres signing take so long?
It is all a far cry from January 2021, when he was onBrighton & Hove Albion’s books and had a dismal loan spell atSwansea Citycut short. Even those who kept faith are surprised at Gyökeres’ stunning transformation.
Chris Badlan, now a scout forAston Villafollowing a stint as head of recruitment at Scottish clubAberdeen, held a similar position at Coventry when Gyökeres arrived.
“I always thought Viktor was a Premier League striker, but did I see him being compared to [Manchester Citystriker]Erling Haaland? No, and not many people would,” Badlan told ESPN.
“But did I think he’d score goals when I saw he’d signed for Sporting CP? Yes, 100%.
“The attributes he’s got, we all knew he’d be a very good striker. To get to the level he’s got to, you have to have a bit of luck like everybody, but you still have to have that mentality. Viktor has always wanted to be the best player he could be, and he’s gone and done that.”
Editor’s note: A version of this article appeared in November 2024 and has been updated to reflect that he’s completed a summer move to Arsenal.
Gyökeres joined Swedish clubBrommapojkarnaat the age of 16 and began work on converting from a winger to a center forward.
“Whilst everybody else had normal training, I was training by myself on the other side of the pitch, honing something so basic,”Gyökeres said in 2024. “It was incredibly tough, but it took me to the next level.”
Brommapojkarna scout David Eklund tells ESPN: “We saw that he had the abilities to be a No. 9 striker with his strength and breakthrough capacity and started to focus on those abilities.
He grew a lot and started to produce goals more and more regularly.”
Eighteen goal involvements in a breakthrough season followed, and the story of his final weeks at Brommapojkarna is the stuff of fairytales.
Source: Espnsoccer
