LONDON (ENGLAND) (ITALPRESS) – No misjudgment: Arsenal fans will soon see the real Viktor Gyokeres. Mikel Arteta has no doubts, even though the 27-year-old Swedish striker – signed for more than €70 million – has so far scored just six goals in 19 appearances, delivering a subdued performance in the recent last-gasp win over Wolverhampton.
“The level of attention on him hasn’t changed from the day he signed to now; that’s normal,” the Gunners’ manager said. “Everyone was very excited about signing a centre-forward, and we brought in a player with an incredible scoring record who needed to adapt to the league. But he didn’t have a pre-season: the first few weeks were difficult because physically he wasn’t at his best, and he’s a player who, like almost everyone in this league, needs to be at peak condition to perform at that level. Then he improved, had a very good spell and got injured,” Arteta recalled.
“Now I’ve seen many positive things in the last two matches he’s played. We need to understand him a bit better in certain situations, and he needs to do the same. But that takes time, and he has our full support.”
For Arteta, the best is yet to come: “Living up to the expectations of joining a big club is different from imagining them. His energy levels and commitment are absolutely top-class and we’re all here to help him, because we’ve all been through it: time is needed. There are always periods when strikers score more goals and others when they score fewer. We have to stay close to him.”
– Photo IPA Agency –
(ITALPRESS).
