2 weeks Ago By [email protected] (Scott Trotter)
Arsenal's attempts to sign a new striker have suffered a huge blow after it emerged that Viktor Gyokeres has his heart set on a move to Manchester United . The striker fired a blank against the Gunners on Tuesday evening , and saw his trademark celebration mocked by Arsenal star Gabriel as the north London side prevailed 5-1 away from home . While there was little trouble for Mikel Arteta's side in front of goal during the Champions League clash, they have long been linked to sign a new goalscoring star with Kai Havertz their primary option to lead the line currently.
It does not appear that Arsenal need to have worried about leaving a positive impression on the Sweden international however. The 26-year-old is said to be keen to instead link back up with former manager Ruben Amorim at Old Trafford. Reports suggest Gyokeres has his heart set on reuniting with Amorim, though an agreement is said to be in place to prevent this happening in January .
The forward racked up 66 goals in 68 outings under the 39-year-old Portuguese coach While Amorim is still settling in to his new environment, Gyokeres has has not publically made his desire clear. "It's not something I think about, nor something I give any importance to. It's just rumours, nothing concrete," he told Swedish outlet Fotbollskanalen.
"Of course, I want to finish the season at Sporting, I'm enjoying my time there. I don't feel stressed about making a change in the future. We'll see when the time comes.
" Gyokeres preferred destination has also posed Arsenal a second problem. Alexander Isak is among the Gunners list of targets and they are monitoring his current situation at Newcastle . The Premier League star, who is under contract at St James' Park until 2028, has emerged as Barcelona's leading target with the Catalan club forced to move on from eyeing his international teammate Gyokeres.
The La Liga giants plan to make a big-money offer for the Magpies ace in the summer. That will see Arsenal face increased competition should they decide to make a move. Any prospective offer from the Gunners awaits approval from a new sporting director after Edu resigned from his position earlier this month.
Speculation over Isak's position has only increased following Newcastle's profit and sustainability struggles during the last transfer window. The club plan to avoid falling into the same situation again and that may have played a factor in the lack of a new contract offer for the 25-year-old. "That's a slightly more complex situation," Howe said if Isak's contract in October.
"Regarding contracts, I'm not involved in those discussions day to day. With Alex, he's got a long contract anyway at the football club and we have to be really careful with our spending due to profit and sustainability rules (PSR). It's not a clear-cut situation.
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