Ferdinand warns Man Utd, Arsenal against signing £59m Amorim favourite
Former Man Utd defender Rio Ferdinand has warned the Red Devils and Arsenal against buying Sporting CP striker Viktor Gyokeres in the summer transfer window.
Both the Gunners and Man Utd could do with a new centre-forward in the summer transfer window with fans of both clubs urging the hierarchies to splash out.
Only four Premier League sides have scored fewer goals than Man Utd this season with Joshua Zirkzee and Rasmus Hojlund scoring just five league goals between them.
Arsenal have not found scoring a massive issue until recently, when Gabriel Jesus and Kai Havertz picked up season-ending injuries, but there is a consensus that the Gunners need a goal-scoring centre-forward to make a difference in key matches.
Both clubs have been linked with Gyokeres – who worked under Man Utd boss Ruben Amorim at Sporting – at some point but Ferdinand isn’t sure the former Coventry City striker will be well suited to the Premier League.
Ferdinand said on his YouTube channel: “I don’t think he’s the guy. I’ve not watched him loads but I’ve probably watched him three times really, really closely.
“Three times I’ve watched him and I’ve gone, he ain’t getting those opportunities in the Premier League. When I see him physically matched, I don’t see it. What else is there?
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“That’s the questions I’m asking. Is there enough after he’s physically matched to get a goal? Physicality is a massive thing in the game today.
“A Ruben Amorim team need physicality and runners but there’s no real physicality in this squad. It just isn’t there.”
Former Man City and Everton defender Joleon Lescott doesn’t think Gyokeres would be “the guy” for Arsenal either with physicality an issue for the Sweden international.
Lescott added: “I believe Arsenal could go for him but he’s not the guy.
“I remember when Timo Werner first came to Chelsea, they played Brighton and he said ‘I’ve never seen anything like that’ in terms of the physicality. Physicality is such a big thing in the Premier League.”
Sporting have reportedly set his price tag at €70m (£59m), despite him having a €100m release clause in his contract, and Portuguese newspaper insists that Gyokeres ‘has a preference’ of joining Liverpool, Manchester City or Arsenal this summer.
The report adds that it is now ‘inevitable’ that the Swede leaves at the end of the season after scoring 39 goals and assisting nine in 40 matches in all competitions.
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