Afternoon all.
With the odd story doing the rounds about Barcelona being interested in Viktor Gyokeres, I thought to myself, what if it’s true? Why would a club as big as Barcelona be interested in an Arsenal player so many fans love to hate. A striker who scored the most goals in a season since Aubameyang in 2019/20.
Only Erling Haaland and Igor Thiago hit 20+ goals last season, the best of the rest managed mid to high teens. Benjamin Sesko managed 11. Both were last summer arrivals, unlike others who scored more than them. Other striker summer signings scored less by the way.
I suppose my thoughts are that a first season for any player from overseas can be difficult. Martin Zubimendi came in and hit the ground running but post Christmas, his game dropped off. Noni Madueke and Eberechi Eze had their moments but neither truly performed at a high level consistently yet they both came from Premier League clubs. Cristhian Mosquera has done pretty well though and continued to do so on Sunday. It’s now their second season so one would expect to see improvement. Assuming all are still at the club when the transfer window closes.
Gyokeres scored 21 goals in all competitions last season which isn’t a bad tally at all, not considering he was feeding off scraps a lot of the time. If the service to him can be improved, I’m pretty sure he score 20+ Premier League goals alone. No one will convince me that Kai Havertz is a more prolific goal than Gyokeres. Our big German has scored 37 goals in 112 matches, Gykoeres has managed 21 goals in 56 games. Add in that Arsenal faced a lower than low block for much of last season, certainly more times than any other club had, perhaps his critics are being harsh.
But what if he does move to Barcelona or elsewhere this summer, unlikely as I think that is, what do Arsenal do in the transfer market? Start again with A.N. Other? Let’s be honest, Arsenal aren’t the most speedy when it comes to signing players. The club are even worse at selling players with Gabriel Jesus, Fabio Vieira and Reiss Nelson still occupying a place in the squad when we know none of them are going to play this coming season.
We know how good our players are by now and yes, I think Gyokeres is one of them but for me, one of the great things from this summer isn’t just the talent of Christos Tzolis or the impressive Myles Lewis-Skelly but the return to form of our captain. He’s either been injured or totally out of form for the last season or two but from his 30 minute cameo against Dortmund to his masterclass against Manchester City, it looks very much like he’s back to being at his best and that can only be great for everyone who loves The Arsenal.
Bukayo Saka is yet to make a proper return but I’m sure it won’t be long until he does. If his performance for England against France is anything to go by, he too could be back to his best this season. If we can win the league with both of these two being injured or not at their best, then how much better will we be with them fully fit and firing again?
Let’s not forget that Kai Havertz wasn’t available for much of last season, nor was Ben White and then latterly, we were without Jurrien Timber and Mikel Merino. If this is the season players stay fit and available then it should be another good one.
Perhaps a more exciting one too in terms of the football we play because against Manchester City, we moved the ball around much quicker. We actually looked dangerous going forwards instead of boring and unimaginative as we tried to pass our way around a low block.
Well, it’s not long now until our 2026/27 campaign kicks off and I’m looking forward to it…
Catch up in the comments.
