Manchester United almost went into the season with a different number 9, as links to Viktor Gyokeres were heating up, but what’s happening to him now vindicates Matheus Cunha’s claim.
It is an open secret that Ruben Amorim is a big fan of Viktor Gyokeres, as he was the engineer of his rise from a Championship goalscorer to a world-class striker.
Ultimately, Man Utd played the long bet on Benjamin Sesko, one which is already beginning to pay off.
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In the meantime, what is happening to Viktor Gyokeres now proves another Man Utd signing, Matheus Cunha’s claim about the club entirely right.
Matheus Cunha roaring on the crowd at Old Trafford
Photo by Ash Donelon/Manchester United via Getty Images
Viktor Gyokeres’ goalless streak
Even when Gyokeres was being linked to Old Trafford, there were doubts over his suitability for Premier League football, let alone in a team like Man Utd.
It was a better move for him to go to Arsenal, where he would get more chances and likely be in a team that would win more games.
The latter has come to fruition, but the former hasn’t, which has just magnified how limited Gyokeres can look when the team isn’t creating for fun, particularly for him.
Gyokeres is in the midst of a nine-game goalless streak, with all but two games being the full 90-minute outings.
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In that run, there is Sweden’s defeat to Kosovo at home, where he was blanked again, and the recent 1-0 win against Fulham marked another poor performance.
If this is what is happening to him in a confident, winning team that dominated possession and chances, then United missed a bullet by not signing him for their team.
It begs the question – What would have been Gyokeres’ fate had he been on this run of form as a United player? Matheus Cunha has already answered that question.
Gyokeres’ coverage vindicates Matheus Cunha
Rasmus Hojlund was hounded out of Man Utd as he got trapped in a vicious cycle of intense scrutiny, leading to a lack of confidence, causing poor performances, and vice versa.
In contrast, Gyokeres arrived at Arsenal as a 27-year-old at the peak of his powers following two seasons of unbelievable scoring numbers.
Yet, the pressure to perform and score goals is nowhere near as breathless on Gyokeres as it was on an unproven Hojlund, or even Sesko at this point.
Cunha recently claimed that playing for United is a different level of scrutiny entirely, something that was previously felt by both Manuel Ugarte and Noussair Mazraoui.
The coverage that the likes of Gyokeres and Florian Wirtz are getting is vindication for those comments, especially in contrast to the treatment Sesko, Hojlund, or Paul Pogba received.
Are Manchester United the best team in the world right now? Far from it. But nobody comes close when it comes to being the biggest club in the world.
Gyokeres’s coverage, or the lack of it, rather, proves it.