Arsenal's star striker Viktor Gyokeres has agreed to give evidence as a witness at an upcoming defamation trial involving his agent Hasan Cetinkaya in Sweden next year
Arsenal's Viktor Gyokeres
Viktor Gyokeres will give evidence in a court case in Sweden next year(Image: Steven Halliwell/Getty Images)
Viktor Gyokeres could miss game time for Arsenal next year after being called to testify in a legal case in Sweden.
Gyokeres joined Arsenal from Sporting Lisbon in a deal worth £63.7million in the summer transfer window and has scored two goals in his first three Premier League matches. But his availability in 2026 is now in doubt after he was dragged into a court case in Stockholm.
The 27-year-old striker is represented by Hasan Cetinkaya, who has filed a lawsuit for gross defamation against two publications in Sweden. The case concerns allegations, published by Fotboll Sthlm and Expressen, that Cetinkaya and his agency, HCM Sports Management, had ties to criminal gangs.
Cetinkaya denies the allegations and previously reported the outlets to the media ombudsman in Sweden for “violations of good journalistic practice”. He has now escalated the matter to the Stockholm District Court.
Gyokeres has not been accused of any crime and is instead due to give evidence as a witness. Paperwork filed by Cetinkaya’s lawyer Joakim Lundqvist shows that the Sweden international has agreed to testify on the stand, if required.
Lundqvist told SVT Sport: “He has been called as a witness to be heard in the case regarding the circumstances described in the evidence.”
The litigation comes after a shooting in the Stockholm suburb of Huddinge in August. Shots were fired at the home of a relative of one of Gyokeres’ representatives.
Stockholm police continue to investigate the incident in which no-one was injured, but have warned about the potential for violence around the industry, given the amount of money involved.
Viktor Gyokeres
Viktor Gyokeres joined Arsenal in July(Image: Getty Images)
Mirror Football has contacted HCM Sports Management and Lundqvist to request further comment.
The striker officially joined Arsenal on July 26 following a long transfer saga which became increasingly bitter. There was a war of words between Gyokeres’ camp and Sporting president Federico Varandas, who denied claims he had a gentleman’s agreement with the forward to sell him this summer.
Sporting fined Gyokeres for refusing to train, but eventually a deal was agreed between all the parties. The former Coventry and Brighton striker has started all three of Arsenal’s Premier League games this season, scoring twice in the 5-0 thrashing of Leeds.
He is currently away on international duty with Sweden, where he started their 2-2 draw against Slovenia in Ljubljana on Friday night. Sweden have another World Cup qualifier against Kosovo in Pristina on Monday night.