Viktor Gyokeres has released an angry statement on social media as his bitter fallout with Sporting Lisbon continues. The Arsenal and Manchester United target is in the middle of a transfer tug of war between the Premier League sides this summer.
It was recently claimed that the Swedish hitman was willing to go on strike to force a move away from Sporting after they appeared to ramp up their asking price after promising to sell him for a modest fee. And Gyokeres has now released a cryptic statement on social media amid the transfer furore.
Writing on his Instagram story, Gyokeres wrote: “There is a lot of talk at the moment, most of it is false. I will speak when the time is right
Gyokeres’ statement comes after an explosive outburst from Sporting president Frederico Varandas. He claimed that he would not be bullied into selling his star forward regardless of any strike claims
“One thing you should already know is me better,” said Varandas, per Record. “Threats, blackmail and insults don’t work with me.
I can guarantee that Viktor Gyökeres will not leave for €60m+10m (£51m+£8.5m) because I never promised him that. This game that the agent is playing only makes the situation worse. To this day, Sporting has not had an offer for Viktor Gyökeres, neither today nor last season.
“I think it’s fair to explain the whole process. The process started last year when the season ended, Sporting were champions and had a fantastic season,” Varandas added.
“During the transfer window we realised that Viktor was going to stay at Sporting because we didn’t receive a single offer for him. When the season started, the agent approached Hugo Viana several times, asking if we could add an extra fee to the contract if he scored ‘x’ goals; I gave Viana the opportunity to negotiate, within reason
Viana manages the relationship with the agents, and very well, this is done by the sporting director. One of the agent’s biggest concerns was whether we would demand the value of the €100m (£85m) clause next year.
“Viana negotiated with the agents over several meetings, until the agent himself asked for the president’s presence to settle the matter once and for all. The issue of the bonus for ‘x’ goals seemed reasonable and at that meeting, where the president, the agent and Viana were present, no player was present, Viktor was not present, the agent wanted to guarantee certain things.”
