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  "path": "/2026/04/07/sporting-manager-blames-arsenal-viktor-gyokeres-struggles-makes-prediction-27881822/",
  "publishedAt": "2026-04-07T06:57:33.000Z",
  "site": "https://metro.co.uk",
  "tags": [
    "Football",
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    "Arsenal",
    "Champions League",
    "Mikel Arteta",
    "Premier League",
    "Sporting",
    "Sporting Lisbon",
    "Viktor Gyokeres",
    "arrived at the Emirates Stadium as one of the most prolific goalscorers in Europe",
    "received criticism from a number of pundits for his general play",
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    "face Sporting in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final",
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  "textContent": "Viktor Gyokeres joined Arsenal from Sporting last summer (Picture: Getty)\n\nSporting manager Rui Borges believes Arsenal’s style of play was the reason for the ‘initial’ struggles that Viktor Gyokeres went through following his £64m summer transfer.\n\nGyokeres arrived at the Emirates Stadium as one of the most prolific goalscorers in Europe, having netted 97 goals in 102 games for Sporting.\n\nMikel Arteta hoped the Sweden international would take Arsenal to another level and help the Gunners win major trophies after several near misses.\n\nArsenal are indeed closing in on their first Premier League title since 2004 and enjoying another deep Champions League run, but Gyokeres has not been a prolific presence in the team.\n\nThe 27-year-old has scored a respectable but far from game-changing 11 goals in the league and received criticism from a number of pundits for his general play.\n\nSporting boss Borges says Arsenal fans were initially ‘suspicious’ of Gyokeres but believes the striker has already shown he is a ‘great player’ who will ‘keep scoring goals’.\n\n‘I believe in the initial stage he had to adapt, given the style of play, and how Arsenal plays,’ Borges said.\n\n##  Get your football fix\n\n**Metro** 's weekly newsletter In The Mixer delivers punchy analysis and breakdowns of the biggest football stories directly to your inbox.\n\nSign up here, it's an open goal.\n\nSporting manager Rui Borges (Picture: Getty)\n\n‘But he is still a great forward and now he is back to what he does well which is scoring goals.\n\n‘During the first stage, the [Arsenal] fans were suspicious given what they paid for him, but little by little the truth came to the surface and he is a really great player and he will keep scoring goals.’\n\nGyokeres returns to his former club on Tuesday night as Arsenal face Sporting in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final.\n\nTo view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tvideo\n\nUp Next\n\nPrevious Page\n\nNext Page\n\nArteta’s £64m signing could receive a hostile welcome given how hard he pushed for a move last summer but Borges hopes he is not targeted by the Sporting fans.\n\n‘He is a great player, and I am sure he will be welcomed by everyone because he marked the history of Sporting, and he deserves this acknowledgement,’ Borges added.\n\n‘I always try to be balanced, and I try to understand everyone. He had the ambition, and after talking to the management, they came to an understanding.\n\n> https://www.instagram.com/p/DMlg46CCEjU/?hl=en\n\n‘So ultimately everything that happened was correct for both sides; both Sporting and the player got what they wanted. He wanted to take that step in his career and we respect that.\n\n‘Players will change, but the club stays the same, and Sporting will go on winning. I wish him all the best and I am sure he will be very welcome here because the admiration we have for him is great.’\n\nArsenal visit Sporting having suffered back-to-back defeats in their last two games, losing to Manchester City in the Carabao Cup final before an FA Cup quarter-final defeat to Southampton.\n\nSouthampton stunned Arsenal last time out (Picture: Getty)\n\nAsked if is is an ideal time to face the Premier League leaders for a place in the semi-finals of the Champions League, Borges said: ‘No, I don’t believe that.\n\n‘It is a great team, and great teams always want to win. They want to be in all competitions.\n\n‘They will be like a wounded beast tomorrow. They will be more focused, more willing to show their collective and individual capacity.\n\n‘Frankly, I think it will make things more difficult for us the fact that they have not had the best two last matches. But Arsenal will be facing a very motivated team\n\n‘We believe we can do something extraordinary tomorrow, something that has never been done by Sporting.’\n\nWhile Arsenal go into the Champions League quarter-final sitting top of the Premier League, Sporting are second in the Portuguese top-flight, five points behind Porto with a game in hand.\n\nSporting finished seventh in the Champions League group stage and beat Bodo-Glimt 5-3 in the round-of-16 despite losing the first leg 3-0.\n\n**For more stories like this, check our sport page**.\n\n**Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on**Facebook,** Twitter and Instagram**.\n\nComment now Comments \nAdd Metro as a Preferred Source on Google\nAdd as preferred source\n",
  "title": "Sporting manager blames Arsenal for Viktor Gyokeres struggles and makes prediction"
}