Revealed: How Viktor Gyokeres compares to his Premier League rivals amid calls for him to follow Ruben Amorim to Man United – after scoring a goal every 84 MINUTES in the league for Sporting Lisbon
Manchester United fans will have been paying special attention to Sporting Lisbon’s 4-1 thumping of Man City in the Champions League, not least because it gave them a chance to see their exciting new boss Ruben Amorim humiliate their bitter rivals.
But also because a potential new face in Viktor Gyokeres took to the stage amid mounting speculation over the Swede’s move to Old Trafford.
They were not disappointed. The electric centre-forward bagged another hat-trick taking him to a barely believable goal tally of 23 strikes from just 17 matches this season.
While a January move for the powerful striker, 26, seems off the table, the arrival of Amorim as Erik ten Hag‘s successor could set up a possible transfer next summer.
The incumbent boss did little to dull the rumours after his side’s demolition of City on Tuesday night, saying: ‘This is my city, this is my country, so I’ll respect it. Viktor has to stay until the end of the season and then his life will probably go somewhere else.’
Manchester United fans will have been paying special attention to Viktor Gyokeres in Sporting Lisbon’s 4-1 thumping of Man City
The centre-forward bagged another hat-trick taking him to a tally of 23 strikes this term
The arrival of Ruben Amorim as Erik ten Hag ‘s successor could set up a possible move for the striker next summer
But is the Swedish star really worth waiting for and are there better options closer to home? Here, Mail Sport delves into how Gyokeres compares with his goal-scoring rivals.
The Swede has had an electrifying couple of seasons since joining Sporting from Coventry in July 2023 for £16million plus £3.5m in bonuses.
Well aware of his vast potential, the Sky Blues inserted a clause in the deal securing 10 to 15 per cent of any future transfer.
And Gyokeres has delivered, placing himself on the cusp of a huge move thanks to a glut of goals over the last 15 months.
In just 43 league games since the start of the 2023-24 campaign, the striker has slotted home 45 times at a rate of a goal every 84 minutes.
His efficiency in front of goal is, indeed, remarkable and this is borne out in the statistics with Gyokeres scoring with 27.6 per cent of his attempts.
Leading the way in the Premier League is, of course, City’s Erling Haaland but even the record-breaking Norwegian is left trailing in the Sporting star’s wake when we take a look at the statistics.
The 24-year-old’s face at the end of a frustrating evening on Tuesday was a picture.
Erling Haaland’s face at the end of a frustrating evening on Tuesday was a picture
Haaland has 38 goals in 41 games since the start of last season, scoring one every 91 minutes
Mohamed Salah is some way behind the duo of Gyokeres and Haaland over the last year or so, scoring 25 goals in 42 matches at a rate of one every 136 minutes
A missed penalty, minimal touches and numerous spurned chances left Haaland seemingly on the verge of tears, the goal machine having been made to look rather ordinary as his Scandinavian contemporary fired three past his side.
The match unfairly reflected a difference in quality between the players which, according to the statistics, is minimal.
Haaland has 38 league goals in 41 games since the start of last season, scoring one every 91 minutes – a figure comparable with that of Gyokeres in what is a more competitive league. His shot conversion rate is also impressive at 22.5 per cent.
No one else in the Premier League comes close to the duo who will potentially be facing off in a Manchester derby in the not-so-distant future.
Mohamed Salah has been a revelation for Liverpool since he arrived at Anfield in 2017, scoring 220 times in 365 matches for the Reds.
The Egyptian has won three Golden Boots in his seven-year spell on Merseyside including an absurd tally of 32 strikes in 2017-18 to announce his return to the Premier League.
He is some way behind the duo of Gyokeres and Haaland, however, over the last year or so, scoring 25 league goals in 42 matches at a rate of one every 136 minutes. His efficiency cutting in from the right-hand side is slightly inferior to the two centre-forwards scoring with 17.4 per cent of his shots.
England’s Ollie Watkins may have provided England with the most dramatic moment of their Euro 2024 campaign with a last-minute winner in the semi-final against the Netherlands, but his numbers pale in comparison to that of Gyokeres.
Ollie Watkins has 24 goals since the beginning of the 2023-24 campaign and is a potent force for Aston Villa
Alexander Isak was once a prospect to join Erik ten Hag’s United side before his Magpies move
Tottenham summer signing Dominic Solanke has 23 goals in 46 matches from his time both at Spurs and former club Bournemouth
United were reportedly eyeing up the Aston Villa man in summer 2023, only to opt for the currently misfiring Rasmus Hojlund instead, but the Red Devils’ interest in the striker has cooled since then despite him firing the Villans into the Champions League.
Watkins has 24 league goals since the beginning of the 2023-24 campaign and, having played more matches than any of his rivals, has a minutes per goal rate of 167 – around one strike every two games.
His shot conversion rate is similar to Salah’s at 18.5 per cent.
Alexander Isak was said to have turned down Ten Hag’s United in 2022 before he made the switch to Newcastle, and his recent form will make the Red Devils regret their inability to lure him in.
The striker also has 24 league goals but in just 38 matches, meaning he slots home once every 123 minutes.
His goal conversion rate, meanwhile, is even better than Haaland’s at 23.8 per cent.
Any lingering resentment at the Magpies for swooping in to secure Isak might be removed, however, if United manage to sign his countryman Gyokeres in the next summer transfer window.
Dominic Solanke, who starred for Bournemouth last year before moving to Tottenham Hotspur in the summer, has 23 league goals in 46 matches at a rate of one every 176 minutes. He scores with 17.8 per cent of his attempts.
Chelsea’s Nicolas Jackson has found his shooting boots after a difficult start to life in London
Arsenal’s Kai Havertz is still burnishing his centre-forward credentials but has 17 goals in 47 games in red
Premier League Golden Boot battles in the years to come could well be dominated by standout Scandinavians
Chelsea’s Nicolas Jackson has bagged just 20 in 45 in the league but his goals-per-minute ratio is similar to that of his London rival at 179 minutes.
His shot conversion rate is 19.4 per cent, although his form has been improving with six in 10 matches this season so far.
Arsenal’s Kai Havertz swapped the Blues for the north of the capital in 2023 and, though fairly new to the centre-forward role, has 17 goals in 47 games including four already this season.
But his strike rate languishes at the bottom of the list at 208 minutes and the German will be hoping to improve this in the coming weeks and lift the Gunners into the top four.
Golden Boot battles in the years to come might be dominated by Scandinavians, with Gyokeres edging closer to arriving at Old Trafford, but their records in the last couple of seasons can only be separated by a cigarette paper.
Performances like the one on Tuesday night, however, will have United fans licking their lips at the prospect of having their own answer to the seemingly unstoppable Haaland.
