Arsenal announced the signing of the Swedish international striker Viktor Gyokeres from Sporting Lisbon on Saturday.
The 27-year-old, who shot 39 goals on the Portuguese title last season and delivered a HAT trick from Champions League against Manchester City, has reportedly signed a five-year deal in a transfer worth £ 55 million (62.9 million euros).
The transfer of Gyokeres, which could eventually cost the North London club, no less than £ 64 million with performance-related add-ons, takes the spending of the Arsenal season in the £ 200 million region.
He becomes Mikel Arteta’s sixth summer signature and follows defender Crithian Mosquera (£ 13 million), midfielder Martin Zubimendi (£ 60 million), goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga (£ 5m), midfielder Christian Norgaard (£ 10m) and Voorwarte Noni Madueke.
Arsenal confirmed the news with a short message about X with the text: «This is where you should be. Viktor Gyokeres is a shooter.»
Gyokeres is expected to meet his new teammates in the current pre-season tour of Arsenal by Singapore and Hong Kong.
The Gunners will be confronted on Sunday with Newcastle in the Singapore National Stadium prior to the final match of their Tour, against Tottenham in Hong Kong on July 31.
Gyokees moved from the Swedish side Brommapojkarna in January 2018, but spent time in Loan in St Pauli and then Swansea and Coventry, before he made a permanent move to the Sky Blues in July 2021.
After Coventry on penalties was defeated by Luton in the 2023 champion finale in Wembley, Gyokeres completed a switch from £ 20.5 million to Sporting. He scored a remarkable 97 goals in 102 games before the Portuguese side.
Arsenal spent the closing months of last season without a recognized striker after prolonged injuries to Gabriel Jesus and Kai Havertz.
Even before that time, Arsenal urgently needed a reliable scorer, and Arteta will hope that his new signing can fire him to his first silverware since he won the FA Cup in 2020, and ended the club’s two decades on a Premier League title.
The new sports director of Arsenal, Andrea Berta, has wasted little time on strengthening a team that has ended in the competition in the competition for the past three seasons.
Gabriel and Myles Lewis-Skelly have also put pen on paper about new contracts in the low season, with a long-term extension for teenager Ethan Nwaneri who was assumed that it was almost completed.
