Arsenal told to pay €100m for striker Arteta loves

Arsenal and Chelsea have been warned that if they want to continue their pursuit of Sporting CP striker Viktor Gyokeres, they should not expect a discount on the striker’s €100 million release fee.

Gyokeres has hit the headlines in recent weeks thanks to his scoring exploits with Sporting but also at international level with Sweden.

With 10 goals and five assists in seven games, he is arguably Europe’s form striker along with Manchester City’s Erling Haaland.

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Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta made him his signing priority in the summer but baulked at Sporting’s demand that his €100m release fee be matched in full.

As such, the Gunners did not make a move for a No.9 but it may well be there is money put aside for them to do so in 2025.

Chelsea also followed him but prioritised Victor Osimhen, who they also missed out on.

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Given Gyokeres’ strong form, it would be little surprise to see the 26-year-old once again on the radar of the Premier League giants.

Sporting head coach Ruben Amorim has told Arteta, though, that the club still expects the full amount in the player’s deal.

“The first time I spoke as Sporting coach, I said that I never believed they would pay that much for me,” he said, according to CNN Portugal, referring to the club buying out his €10m clause at Braga.

“He must feel the same. It’s a very high clause.

“Gyokeres is a great player and I think he’s worth €100m. That’s the price he has and we have to stick by it. Whoever wants to sign him will have to pay €100m.”

Gyokeres angling for a move?

The player has already admitted that he was slightly frustrated to see offers for him in the summer knocked back, though he also stressed he is happy to be at Sporting.

“Of course you want to play at the highest level. The €100m exit clause was probably a bit too much because nothing came of it. Of course it’s a lot of money. But we’ll see what happens next window…” he told Sport Bladet.

Gyokeres, meanwhile, has an Estimated Transfer Value (ETV) of €25.6m and a contract with Sporting that runs until June 2028.