Viktor Gyokeres is looking to follow in the footsteps of Thierry Henry at Arsenal, leading the line at the Emirates as the new number 14.
Gyokeres off the mark for Arsenal, scoring his first goal in red during their 3-0 pre-season win over Athletic Bilbao on Saturday.
It’s likely to be the first of many. The prolific Swede has been brought in by Mikel Arteta to deliver goals, with Kai Havertz failing to provide the cutting edge in front of goal.
The 27-year-old will wear the number made iconic by Arsenal legend Thierry Henry, and he will look to emulate some of his trademark qualities as he leads the line for Arteta’s side. That said, there’s one Henry habit he’ll be keen not to copy.
Henry has 175 league goals under his belt and is the joint-fourth highest scorer in Premier League history, alongside Frank Lampard. That said, not many were headers.
Of those 175 goals, 136 were with his right foot, 31 with his left foot, and just six were headers.
Gyokeres, despite scoring with his head against Bilbao, also shares this characteristic. Gyokeres scored just four times with his head for Sporting across 102 appearances in Portugal.
Granted, it doesn’t matter how the goals go in, but it’s interesting to note the trait the two share. That said, Gyokeres is already off the mark for the Gunners, with a well-taken header essentially proving this theory wrong.
Arsenal manager Arteta shared his thoughts on the Gyokeres’ goal during his post-match press conference.
“That first goal is always very important,” Arteta said. “The way he took it as well, really well.”
When asked about the 27-year-old’s hunger to score goals, Arteta replied: “That’s his nature.
“Everything that he does, his movement, timing, the way he predicates the next move, where the space is going to be, that’s the instinct he has. That’s why he’s scored so many goals in the last few seasons.”
“In any situation, there is a player there that can score a goal.”
Gyokeres is well and truly off the mark – but how many goals will he get in an Arsenal shirt this season?
