Why Chelsea and Arsenal are courting Sporting goal machine Viktor Gyokeres

As winter turns to spring, the summer transfer window is beginning to loom on the horizon. If reports in recent weeks are anything to go by, then there will be at least one big money striker moving across the continent in the off-season. Victor Osimhen is supposedly the most likely to secure a high-profile transfer, but it's Viktor Gyokeres who is again attracting interest from Europe's big hitters. 

Those in attendance in Sporting CP's 2-1 win over Benfica on Thursday night will have watched Gyokeres score what proved to be the winning goal in the Portuguese Cup victory over their Lisbon rivals. The Swede has proven a revelation in the Portuguese capital following his arrival from Coventry last summer, scoring 17 and registering a further eight assists in Liga Portugal. 

A WhoScored rating of 8.00 is better than any other player in Portugal's top tier with both the 25-year-old's finishing ability and desire to bring others into player a key reason behind his immediate success for Sporting. "He will only leave if someone pays the buyout clause in January," head coach Ruben Amorim said back in January amidst links with a move to Chelsea. 

That release clause is believed to be set at €100m. In the current market, that could prove an absolute bargain. It's no shock, then, that the Blues and London rivals Arsenal are believed to be weighing up a move for Gyokeres this summer. Given the aforementioned release clause, he could prove a more affordable option than Osimhen, who is supposedly being courted by the Premier League pair. 

The Sporting star could also prove the better fit for their respective sides. As mentioned, Gyokeres has the ability to bring others into play to a higher standard than most other forwards on the continent. Eight assists not only ranks third in Liga Portugal, but 37 key passes is the 13th highest return in the division. For a striker operating in a team that utilises a lone frontman, he'd be a great fit for Chelsea and Arsenal, who both rely on a single striker to lead the charge. 

As such, they need a striker who not only hits the back of the net with great regularity but one who shows the ability to link up with teammates, with Gyokeres does to a high standard. The aim of any frontman, though, is to hit the back of the net. This is the issue with both Chelsea and Arsenal - neither has a striker on the books who can get among the goals with great consistency. 

Gabriel Jesus, for example, has struck just four goals, but has returned an xG of just 5.85, an underperformance of 1.85. The Brazilian should be doing better. Nicolas Jackson, meanwhile, has hit the back of the net seven times in England's top tier this term, yet boasts an xG 11.79, an xG underperformance of 4.79. The Senegal international should be doing better. 

By comparison, Gyokeres has scored 17 league goals yet his xG is just 12.69 in Liga Portugal this season, an overperformance of 4.31, that the biggest in Liga Portugal this season. Not only is Gyokeres outscoring the pair but he's putting away the more difficult chances too. While it's not sustainable, it's proof that the Sweden international is able to routinely hit the back of the net with both the easier and more difficult chances, the same of which cannot be said of Jesus and Jackson. 

When you factor in Gyokeres' impressive ball carrying ability, and you have the ideal forward who is capable of putting the ball in the back of the net, able to provide for others and not only drive his team forward in pursuit of goal; but ease pressure on his side's goal. Indeed, only Rafik Guitane (74) has completed more dribbles than Gyokeres (48) in Liga Portugal this season. Once the Sporting striker gains a head of steam, he's incredibly difficult to stop. 

No wonder, then, that Sporting are keen to retain his services, or at the very least; standing firm unless his release clause is met. If he continues his superb Sporting form, then Europe's elite will be rightly keeping a watchful eye on Gyokeres ahead of a potential summer transfer merry-go-round.