Ruben Amorim will face the monster he created when Manchester United take on Arsenal to kick off their Premier League season, with Viktor Gyokeres as the opponent.
Viktor Gyokeres was linked with Man Utd throughout the summer, but the money they spent on Benjamin Sesko proved that they were never really in for him.
Gyokeres joined Arsenal instead and is likely to start against Ruben Amorim’s Red Devils as he makes his Premier League debut with a marquee game.
It will only be the second time Gyokeres has played against Man Utd, and Amorim would love a repeat of what happened when he faced United the first time.
Eric Bailly of Manchester United is closed down by Viktor Gyokeres of Brighton and Hove Albion during the Carabao Cup fourth round match between Brighton and Hove Albion and Manchester United at Amex Stadium on September 30, 2020
Photo by Andy Rain – Pool/Getty Images
When Viktor Gyokeres faced Man Utd
Gyokeres’ footballing journey has been far from conventional, with stops in the Championship and a scattered spell with a Premier League team preceding his breakout in Portugal.
Amorim plucked him from Coventry and turned him into a goal machine, but before his Coventry spell, English football had almost written him off entirely.
A poor loan at Swansea from Brighton had the alarm bells ringing, but even that loan had only been sanctioned because Gyokeres had proven himself incapable of making a difference for Brighton.
That loan was sanctioned in October 2020, and just a month earlier, he played his one and only game against Man Utd in the Carabao Cup.
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Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s dominant Brighton side put three unanswered goals past Brighton that day, on September 30, 2020, courtesy of Paul Pogba, Scott McTominay, and Juan Mata.
Gyokeres started for Brighton and was hooked off after 63 minutes in a completely anonymous display that probably sealed his fate with the Seagulls.
Mata was crowned the player of the match in that game, and less than a month later, Gyokeres was struggling to make a mark at Swansea.
He would join Coventry on a six-month loan in January 2021, and the rest is history as he scored for fun at Coventry, caught Sporting’s eye, where he met Ruben Amorim.
Now, he faces Ruben Amorim.
Ruben Amorim needs to nullify Gyokeres
An advantage United will have against Arsenal is that Amorim knows Gyokeres’ strengths and weaknesses inside out, so he will have a clear plan for him.
Still, at the end of the day, personnel on the pitch will dictate the result once the whistle blows, and he will hope that United aren’t defeated by the monster he created.
There are many subplots to this game, as Benjamin Sesko has gone up against Gyokeres recently as well, emerging victorious last season with RB Leipzig.
United and Sesko have had the upper hand on Gyokeres in their few meetings so far. Both will hope the trend continues at Old Trafford.
It is just one game but being the first one, it will be monumental for momentum early in the season.