For some, first impressions are everything, but Viktor Gyökeres insists it is unfair to judge him based on his 14-minute cameo in Arsenal’s 1-0 North London derby defeat to Spurs in Hong Kong.
While some supporters expected fireworks from the Swede in his pre-season debut, that was not the case. He looked rusty, and the stats reflected that.
Gyökeres vs Spurs
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14 minutes played
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0 goals
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0 assists
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0 total shots
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2 touches
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1 touch in the opposition box
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1 chance created
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100 percent pass accuracy (1/1)
Safe to say, he was not the game-changing signing fans had hoped to see, yet.
Gyökeres: “I’ve only done one training session”
Asked what instructions he received from Mikel Arteta before entering the pitch, the Swede explained his muted display. As quoted in an interview via YouTube:
“Yeah, just try to use my qualities as much as I can. But then, as you said, I haven’t been here too long. I’ve only done one training session. So yeah, I think I have to do a few more to come into it even more.”
It is clear Gyökeres was not match-ready and had not yet adapted to Arsenal’s tactical setup. Perhaps the anticipation around his signing pushed Arteta to give him an early runout, despite limited preparation.
Time and training will bring the best out of him
With Arteta’s tactical demands, details matter. Over the coming days and weeks, he and Gyökeres will be working closely to unlock the striker’s full potential and find the best role for him in the system. Extra training sessions should help the former Sporting CP striker integrate both tactically and socially.
Gyökeres did not have a dream debut against Spurs, but there is no reason to panic. Give it time, and he will come good in red and white – he has literally been a Gunners for one week..
Hopefully, by the time the league opener at Old Trafford arrives, on 17th August, he will be ready to show Manchester United what they missed out on.
Thoughts Gooners? It’s a bit early days to be judging huh?
Daniel O
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I don’t think anyone is judging him after just 1 appearance. Well I hope not. It’s a bit crazy to do that. It takes time to adjust to a new team and a new league
It’s good that he will got some practice before the season starts. We have Villarreal and Athletic Club to play before United, so he will have some more playing time this week
Again, we can’t rush him or Zubimendi or EZE if we get him.
We need to give them some time
No one judged….
Don’t see the point of this article, it has no basis
It would be very unreasonable, to put it mildly, for any Arsenal fans to judge Gyokeres or any other new player after a total of 14 minutes in a pre-season friendly (particularly if they clearly weren’t match fit anyway).
I may have missed it, but I don’t recall reading anything after the game about fans saying they were disappointed with the performance that Gyokeres put in. Rather, the comments tended to be that they were pleased to see him on a pitch in an Arsenal shirt at last.
I would go as far as saying no Arsenal player should be judged based on that game. All our players looked a bit off and that tells me something wasn’t quite right with their fitness or preparation.
They had reportedly had a training session that morning not to mention the traveling and humidity. The two final preseason games will give us a clearer picture of what to expect.
He’ll need time with our players to understand our patterns of play. This is why I expect Havertz to start our season. The only thing that will change that is if he looks phenomenal in training and preseason games, but in my opinion, he’ll need a little time