Viktor Gyokeres made his Premier League debut, but struggled during Arsenal’s 1-0 victory over Manchester United.
Viktor Gyokeres’ figures from his Premier League debut have astonished fans, despite his struggles for Arsenal against Manchester United.
The Swede, who joined Manchester United for £63.5 million from Sporting CP, made his Premier League debut at Old Trafford.
Mikel Arteta’s side departed with three points despite not being in top form following Riccardo Calafiori’s header from a Declan Rice corner.
However, their new No.14, who leads the line, left much to be desired on his Premier League debut.
Gyokeres, a former Brighton and Coventry City striker, played 60 minutes before being substituted by Kai Havertz after failing to make an impact on the game.
Viktor Gyokeres’ stats from his Premier League debut
Gyokeres, who has 97 goals for Sporting, will have been keen to get started, but he did not even manage a single shot in his first game – something he has not done since his Championship days with Coventry.
According to SofaScore, the 27-year-old ran 7.8 kilometers and 12 sprints, clocking in at 31.4 km/h.
However, he only had 21 touches, three of which were in the box, lost control 11 times, completed four of nine passes, and did not generate any chances for his teammates in a fairly disappointing performance.
In terms of duels, he won two on the ground but only six in the air.
Arsenal fans believed that their players did not play to his abilities with balls in behind, however when he did get one, Gyokeres fluffed it and eventually gave away a foul for a bad touch.
After the game, former Liverpool player Daniel Sturridge remarked on Gyokeres’ performance, explaining that changing to a completely new manner of playing is difficult and would take time to produce results.
“They’ve been playing with a striker in Havertz who is very different to Gyokeres,” Sturridge stated during Sky Sports broadcast.
“It takes time to adjust to that player’s runs. He is going to have to change his strategy. It’s not only that the team is changing for him; he’s also changing for the team.
“It’s about figuring out how he’s going to perform best; the manager will have to implement things on the training pitch.
“He’s going to have to have personal conversations and that’s what it takes for you to hit the ground running.”
Gyokeres is still in his early stages of pre-season after arriving late, and he will be looking to get up to speed in Arsenal’s next game against Leeds United at the Emirates on Saturday, August 23.
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