Viktor Gyokeres: Arsenal, Man Utd Target ‘Considering Extreme Measure’

Viktor Gyökeres has reportedly told Sporting CP president that he wants to leave this summer and is weighing up an even more extreme action.

Viktor Gyökeres future appears more and more complicated. | IMAGO/ZUMA Press Wire

Arsenal and Manchester United transfer target Viktor Gyökeres is reportedly weighing up the possibility of going on strike to force a summer exit from Sporting CP.

The Swedish forward finds himself at the epicentre of an increasingly heated transfer skirmish this summer. Clearly established as one of the leading goalscorers in Europe, it was publicly accepted that Gyökeres would be on his way out of Lisbon this summer.

As Sporting president Frederico Varandas angrily pointed out earlier this month, the club was not willing to offload their talisman for a discounted sum of €70 million (£59.9 million, $80.8 million). While they were not demanding the full €100 million (£85.6 million, $115.5 million) of his release clause, the Portuguese champions are expecting a sum upwards of €80 million (£68.5 million, $92.4 million).

This combative stance is thought to be in direct violation of a gentleman’s agreement between the player and club, leaving Gyökeres reportedly “furious.”

Viktor Gyökeres has enjoyed the most prolific season of his career. | IMAGO/Maciej Rogowski

That anger hasn’t dissipated. Portuguese outlet A BOLA now claim that Gyökeres is considering taking the most “extreme measure” available to him; going on strike. A tried and tested method for wantaway stars throughout football’s long history, refusing to play inevitably leads to acrimony but doesn’t always end with the player getting their way.

Sporting are scheduled to return for preseason training on July 1. As he was initially called up to Sweden’s squad for June’s fixtures—before pulling out with a minor injury—Gyökeres could feasibly be entitled to return with the rest of his international teammates on July 7.

The 27-year-old is thought to have already told Varandas that he wants to leave this summer. Juventus are thought to have joined Arsenal and United in the race for Gyökeres’s signature but A BOLA claim that no formal offers have yet been received by Sporting.

If negotiations drag into July, it will be intriguing to see if Gyökeres follows through on his supposed threat of inaction. Sporting’s reaction to this standoff will be even more telling.

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