The Woeful 2-Year Individual Record Viktor Gyokeres Broke on Debut For Arsenal against Man United

Viktor Gyökeres’ debut was one of the biggest talking points heading into Manchester United vs Arsenal on Sunday. But while the Gunners left Old Trafford with victory, the Swedish striker’s individual display told a less flattering story.

Mikel Arteta had promised the “fear factor” Gyökeres would bring to the Premier League, yet it never materialised. 

The £85m signing from Sporting CP failed to register a single shot in the 60 minutes he played — a surprising statistic for a striker renowned for his relentless goal threat.

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According to BBC data, it had been over two years — a run of 69 consecutive league matches — since Gyökeres last went through a full game without a single attempt on goal. 

Ironically, that previous blank also came in England, back in April 2023, when he was at Coventry City against Blackburn Rovers.

At Sporting, Gyökeres carved out a reputation as one of Europe’s most dangerous forwards, scoring 43 goals in two seasons without once drawing a shooting blank. 

That run came to an abrupt end on his Premier League debut.

The lack of end product could partly be explained by his limited preparation. Gyökeres missed Sporting’s pre-season while pushing for his move to Arsenal and has had only a handful of training sessions under Arteta.

 The Swede’s lack of sharpness was evident, even if there were flashes of his trademark power and intelligent runs.

On more than one occasion, he was played into promising positions, but the link-up with his new teammates wasn’t quite there yet. When he was replaced by Kai Havertz on the hour mark, jeers rang out from the United supporters — not the debut he would have dreamed of.

Despite the barren outing, Arteta defended his new striker and insisted his best is yet to come:

“Then in the final action situation, he did not have that many chances to do that, because in the previous action, we had to play that last ball and the line was standing still with 40 metres to play. We did not manage to put the ball through to exploit his quality. But overall, coming away to Man United, winning your first game with Arsenal, is a good start.”

Arsenal have committed to a more direct style of play this season, designed to maximise Gyökeres’ ability to bulldoze through centre-backs and finish chances inside the box. For now, though, patience will be required as he builds rhythm and adapts to life in the Premier League.

What is clear is that Arsenal have invested in a forward whose ceiling is sky-high — but whose journey to becoming the club’s new talisman may take longer than expected.