Viktor Gyokeres was the talk of the town for Arsenal fans as they took on Tottenham Hotspur in pre-season.
Gyokeres moved to Arsenal in a £64m move last week, becoming Mikel Arteta’s new number 14 and following in the footsteps of Gunners legend Thierry Henry.
The Swede made his Arsenal debut against none other than bitter rivals Tottenham Hotspur – a fitting start to his Gunners career.
In a game with a Raya mistake, here’s how fans reacted to the 27-year-old’s long-awaited bout.
Despite just 13 minutes on the field, Gunners fans were seemingly happy to see Gyokeres’ debut, but agreed there wasn’t much time for the Swede to make an impact.
‘Didn’t get the ball much, but his movement was great,’ one put.
Another adds: ‘Nothing really to talk about came on way too late to have a true impact’.
‘Can everyone just agree to not judge Gyokeres after that performance, please?’ one more asks.
However, it was the man who started the game, Kai Havertz, who was heavily criticised.
‘Havertz is not good enough as the highest-paid player at the club,’ one writes.
Another states, very harshly: ‘I feel like anyone that rated or allowed themselves to be gaslighted on Havertz shouldn’t be allowed to enjoy Gyokeres, just exit the sport.’
A final Gunners fan adds, ‘Guys need to stop gaslighting about what Havertz brings to the table. It’s enough.’
Havertz and Gyokeres’ debates will be apparent for most of the season, but there’s huge weight on the shoulders of both heading into the new Premier League season.
In the time Gyokeres had on the pitch, it’s not a good look on paper. Here were his stats.
- 13 minutes played
- 0 goals
- 0 assists
- 0 shots on target
- 2/2 accurate passes
- 1 chance created
- 2 touches
Not a bad debut by any stretch, but of course, Gyokeres has much more to give Arsenal. The serial goal-getter only showed glimpses of what he’s about, and didn’t have any chance in front of the goal.
Nevertheless, exciting to see the Swede in a Gunners shirt for Arsenal supporters.
