Manchester United are in the race to sign Viktor Gyokeres and Real Madrid have now made a decision on the Sporting striker.
Manchester United saw Rasmus Hojlund suffer a disappointing Premier League season, with the Dane scoring just four league goals.
The Dane’s complete loss of confidence means United are in the market for striking options this summer.
Matheus Cunha has joined United from Wolverhampton Wanderers, but he will predominantly play as a number 10 under Ruben Amorim.
United are targeting Hugo Ekitike, though a deal to sign the Eintracht Frankfurt will not be easy or cheap.
Amorim’s preference may be to sign Viktor Gyokeres, having enjoyed a brilliant stint together with Sporting.
Viktor Gyokeres holding the medal after winning the Portuguese Cup
Photo by Valter Gouveia/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Real Madrid make Viktor Gyokeres decision
United have made contact to sign Gyokeres, but the Swede’s future in Lisbon has become something of a soap opera.
Reports suggest Gyokeres is furious with Sporting over a belief that the club is pricing him out of a transfer.
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United will linger in the race for Gyokeres, but must consider other options as Arsenal continue to chase the Sporting star.
The Athletic now claim that Real Madrid have been offered the chance to sign Gyokeres this summer.
Florentino Perez usually has something up his sleeve, and has already pulled off the signing of Trent Alexander-Arnold on a free transfer.
New boss Xabi Alonso wants to sign a centre forward to offer a physical presence in attack, with Gyokeres a potential option.
However, Real are thought to have snubbed the chance to bid for Gyokeres, with two key reasons cited.
Firstly, Real are concerned that Gyokeres is too expensive for their plans this summer, with signings in other areas also needed.
The other problem is that Real ideally want to sign a striker who will sit on the bench and come on to make a big impact, just like Joselu did under Carlo Ancelotti.
Gyokeres would be expecting first-team action, and Real seemingly believe that he just isn’t the right fit for such a role in Alonso’s squad.
Manchester United will be relieved over Real’s Gyokeres stance
Real are signing United target Franco Mastantuono but don’t appear to have plans to rival the Red Devils for Gyokeres.
United were able to sign defender Leny Yoro ahead of Real last summer, securing a major coup right under the noses of the Spanish giants.
The reason that felt so important is that Real don’t tend to lose transfer races.
Real’s pulling power has been remarkable over the years, securing deals for the likes of Antonio Rudiger, Aurelien Tchouameni, Jude Bellingham and Kylian Mbappe.
Mastantuono is their latest project for the future and Real would have immediately emerged as favourites for Gyokeres had Alonso wanted him.
A battle with Real would have been far from ideal, especially with United having no European action for next season, and United will hope to see Real stay far away from the race for Gyokeres this summer.