Viktor Gyökeres enjoyed a remarkable spell at Sporting Club, scoring nearly 100 goals across just two seasons and earning the Gerd Müller Trophy this year. The award highlighted his prolific scoring ability, as he outscored other leading strikers in Europe during the previous season. It was this impressive record that initially attracted Arsenal to the striker, prompting the club to bring him to the Premier League in the hope that he could replicate his form in England.
Since his move to the Emirates, however, Gyökeres has struggled to find the same level of consistency in front of goal. While expectations were high following his achievements in Portugal, adapting to the Premier League has proven challenging. There are concerns over his goalscoring, but with a long-term contract in place, he has the opportunity to adjust to the rigours of English football and demonstrate that he can succeed at this level.
Comparisons with Europe’s Elite
Despite winning the Gerd Müller Trophy ahead of players such as Harry Kane, Erling Haaland, and Kylian Mbappé, Gyökeres has been reminded that he is not yet operating at the same level as these established stars. Speaking about the striker’s continued goal drought following Arsenal’s recent Premier League fixture against Fulham, Alan Shearer commented, as quoted by the BBC, “He’s not in the league of the three we showed in the previous clip, far from that. But I think he brings a different strength, there’s no doubt that he will have to improve his goalscoring, as you said, he’s only got three.”
Shearer’s remarks underline that while Gyökeres may not yet rival Europe’s elite forwards, he brings unique qualities to Arsenal’s squad. His physical presence, movement, and ability to link play offer the team options that go beyond simple goal statistics. The focus now is on translating those attributes into more frequent goals for the Gunners.
The Path Forward
Gyökeres does not need to replicate the performances of Kane, Haaland, or Mbappé. His priority is to increase his output in front of goal so that Arsenal can secure victories and compete for trophies. With time to adapt, the striker has the opportunity to grow into his role, developing both confidence and efficiency in the Premier League. If he can improve his finishing and consistently convert chances, Gyökeres has the potential to make a significant contribution to Arsenal’s ambitions domestically and in Europe.
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I think everyone knew he’s not in the same bracket as Mbappe, Haland or Kane who are the best strikers on the planet.
Our strength does not lie on one player; our wingers, midfielders and even defenders are known to chip in with goals so we don’t need a Haland -amount of goals from our striker. As long as Gyökeres/Havertz keeps defenders occupied and creates chances with his movement or shooting, I’m happy.
The way Liverpool are being atrocious and our defense is seriously rock solid, I won’t have any complains over Gyokeres as long as we win the league.
I remember my comments in the early part of the summer window where I stated that I’ve not been on the side of Arsenal really needing a potent finisher due to the way goals are spread around.
That said, I was still happy with most of our acquisitions, especially Eze and Gyokeres.
I saw an article on skysports few days ago detailing how Gyokeres’ movements have led to him dragging defenders away to create space for others to score. That might just be our hidden missing piece.
But I’m sure he’ll score much more goals than Jesus.
The Gerd Müller Trophy shows he did better than Haaland, Mbappe and Kane last season and I’ll gladly take that
The three mentioned are world class and VG isn’t, even before we signed him we all knew that, what’s the big deal?🤷🏼♀️
What’s the point of this article. We all know, Gykores himself probably, that he is not at the same level yet as the three players mentioned.
Most people will agree that Gyokeres is not at the same level as those others. What we will now have are a number of different narratives being put forward if he does not score at the same rate as he has before. Some will say that he is up against better defences so cannot be expected to score at the same rate. Some will say he is simply not good enough. On the other hand there are those with a historical agenda against the manager who will blame Arteta.
I remember at the start of the season Wrighty was asked about his expectations for Gyokeres. When he said 15 goals, he was mocked by lots of our fans,for seemingly underestimating our striker. Some went as far making comparisons with the alien that is Haaland and having conversations about the golden boot.
Wright wasn’t wrong though. It’s a huge step up from Portugal to England and to put such massive expectations on him was just setting oneself up to be disappointed. Personally, I was hoping for a number in the teens from him and similar-ish numbers from Havertz as they share minutes. That way you get your 25 goals a season striker from two players.
I think the Havertz injury messed up the plan. He would have taken the pressure off Gyokeres.
David,
You say most will agree that Gyokeres is not at the same level as those others.
We’ll to be honest I’d love to hear from the ones that do think he’s at their level. It would make for some interesting reading.