Manchester United could be back in contention to sign Viktor Gyokeres from under Arsenal’s noses this summer after the Sporting Lisbon forward reportedly made a u-turn over his future.
Gyokeres is highly-coveted by a number of clubs this summer but the Swedish hot-shot had previously indicated that he was holding out for a transfer to Arsenal due to their ability to challenge for titles and regularly play in the Champions League.
But Arsenal have yet to return to the negotiation table after Sporting raised their asking price to more than €80 million despite an alleged agreement to sell him for €65m.
Meanwhile, RB Leipzig could lower their asking price for Arsenal’s other top striker target in Benjamin Sesko, potentially leaving Gyokeres without a chance to move to his ideal destination.
The Mirror report that Gyokeres isn’t ‘getting the interest he perhaps felt he would this summer’ and, having vowed to never play for Sporting again, the 27-year-old is believed to be widening the scope of clubs he would be willing to join in order for him to force an exit from the Portuguese side.
With Arsenal considering moving for Sesko, Gyokeres is thought to be ‘increasingly aware’ that his best bet may be to reunite with Ruben Amorim at Old Trafford and intermediaries have said to have reached out to United to signal that the prolific forward is ready to join the club this summer.
Man Utd and Arsenal left as last teams standing for Gyokeres
Gyokeres has already turned down the prospect of a move to the Saudi Pro League with Al-Hilal this summer due to his desire to remain in Europe, while Juventus have been unable to afford the Sporting star’s asking price as they close in on a deal for free agent Jonathan David.
Real Madrid and Liverpool would both appeal heavily to Gyokeres but neither club is considering a move for the player at this stage and Bayern Munich are also believed to be targeting Nick Woltemade instead.
The situation has left Gyokeres with only Arsenal and United as his only remaining major options, which has softened the striker’s stance on moving to Manchester, having been reluctant due to the club not playing in Europe next season.
However, United’s interest will hinge on them being able to sell the likes of Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Antony in order to raise the funds for Gyokeres, with the Red Devils also closing in on a €70m deal for Bryan Mbeumo from Brentford.
Football transfer news headlines today
The FootballTransfers app
Check out FootballTransfers’ new app for all of football’s big storylines, transfer rumours and exclusive news in one convenient place directly on your mobile device.
The FootballTransfers app is available on Google Play and in the Apple App Store. Download here:
