Nigel Winterburn has outlined where it’s all gone wrong for Viktor Gyokeres. The 27-year-old striker, whom Arsenal signed from Sporting CP in the summer for £64m, has struggled to find the net this season.
Gyokeres has featured nine times in the Premier League for the Gunners, yet he’s only found the net three times, with two of which coming against Leeds United on his home debut. The Sweden international’s only other goal was against Nottingham Forest, also at the Emirates Stadium, back in September.
Since then, he’s struggled to impress, firing blanks in each of his last five games in the English top-flight. Gyokeres did, however, net a brace against Atletico Madrid in the UEFA Champions League, but by which point Arsenal had already secured a two-goal cushion.
Speaking exclusively to football.london, via Casino.org, ahead of the north London outfit’s clash against Burnley, Winterburn commented on the Swede’s rocky start. The Arsenal hero pointed the finger at Gyokeres’ teammates.
“I don’t think it’s him [to blame for his lack of goal],” said Winterburn. “I actually probably look at it as a bit of a role reversal. My personal take is I think he’s looked a lot sharper in the last few games rather than at the start.
“Let’s just talk about percentage goals-wise. He’s not where he wants to be. He makes some intelligent runs. I still think that the rest of the team are adapting around him. They’re just about working out what he’s doing, where he wants the ball.
“There’s no doubt in my mind those goals will come. At the moment, we’ve been dominant on set plays, and we’ve struggled in open play a little bit to create lots of chances, which is not down solely to him.
“But to me, he looks more comfortable in the last two or three weeks in the team than I think at the start of the season. Mikel Arteta will be doing a huge amount of work with him in training.
“I think that will all come together. At this stage, to be honest with you, I’m not worried about it. If he’s still, let’s say, struggling for goals, which is not all about what you want your striker to do.
“You want link-up play. You want movement as well. But if we’re still talking about the same things at Christmas, it may be more of a slighter concern, and going through into January.
“But at the moment, I’m not worried. Personally, as I just said, I think he looks a lot sharper in the last two or three weeks than he’s looked at the very, very start of the season.”
Gyokeres will hope to end his goal drought in the Premier League when Arsenal lock horns with Burnley at Turf Moor on Saturday afternoon.