Arsenal given edge over Man Utd in race for Viktor Gyokeres

Sporting CP striker Viktor Gyokeres has been described as increasingly likely to move on next summer, with Arsenal – rather than Manchester United – emerging as one of the favourites to sign the sought-after forward according to multiple reports in Portugal.

Gyokeres has been the darling of the transfer gossip columns for months. A staggering haul of 80 goals in 89 games for Sporting across the past two seasons has earned the 26-year-old a deserved reputation as one of the best strikers in world football.

Arsenal are in obvious need of a prolific forward – a long-standing truism which predates the club’s current injury crisis – but they are not alone in their pursuit of Gyokeres. Manchester United have been relentlessly linked with the mobile centre-forward, with speculation only increasing after his former Sporting coach Ruben Amorim took charge of the Red Devils this season.

While rival clubs have made little secret of their admiration for the No 9, Gyokeres has been more reserved. However, Record now claim that the player has “signalled his desire” to leave Sporting in the summer, with the chances of his exit rated as “huge”.

Fellow Portuguese outlet A Bola doesn’t contest that stance, adding instead that Gyokeres is insistent on joining a team which will be competing in next season’s Champions League campaign.

United started the weekend slumped in 14th place, 13 points adrift of the Premier League top five which is expected to guarantee qualification for Europe’s premier club competition. Arsenal, by contrast, are second and remain involved in the knockout stages of this year’s continental jamboree.

Amorim’s floundering Red Devils could still theoretically qualify for next season’s competition by winning the Europa League, although they are ranked as just fifth-favourites to lift the trophy, trailing Lazio, Roma, Lyon and fellow Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur.

Arsenal may have the edge over United in the race for Gyokeres but the Red Devils could help bolster their appeal by beating the Gunners when they face off in the Premier League on Sunday afternoon.