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Metro
20 minutes ago
- Metro
Gyokeres' goals must fire Gunners to silverware or Arteta will feel the heat
Mikel Arteta will be out of excuses if Arsenal fail to win significant silverware this season with the imminent arrival of Viktor Gyokeres from Portuguese side Sporting. The Gunners have been desperately crying out for a prolific forward to finish off their exciting attacking play as they chase their first Premier League title in more than two decades and it is imperative the Sweden international cuts it in the English top flight. A fee has been agreed to take the marksman to the Emirates and the deal is expected to be officially announced by the end of the week, pending a medical. Gyokeres looks a phenomenal player and was the top scorer in Europe last season with 39 goals in the Portuguese Liga, which is more than Mohamed Salah, Erling Haaland, Alexander Isak, Harry Kane, Robert Lewandowski, Lautaro Martinez, Kylian Mbappe and any other hot shot you care to mention netted in their domestic divisions. He also scored six times in the Champions League, celebrating a hat-trick in a 4-1 home win against Manchester City while also bagging goals against Lille, Sturm Graz and RB Leipzig and has yet to hit his prime as he has only just turned 27. The flip side of the coin is that the top-flight in Portugal isn't the strongest of competitions and Gyokeres failed to deliver at Brighton before being sold to Coventry where he excelled for the Sky Blues with goals galore, albeit in the Championship. There is also the concern that Gunners boss Arteta has misfired in previous deals for forwards who should net around 20 league goals a term with the £45m move for Manchester City striker Gabriel Jesus and the £65m spent to bring in Kai Havertz from Chelsea failing to deliver the goods – and that's not factoring in Raheem Sterling's disastrous loan spell from the Blues. Arteta has harped on about believing in his process since taking charge of the Emirates hotseat from Arsène Wenger in December 2019 but the FA Cup success against Chelsea the following May is the only trophy he has won unless you count the 2020 and 2023 Community Shields as major reasons to celebrate. As well as Gyokeres, Arsenal have splashed out on wideman Noni Madueke, midfielders Martin Zubimendi and Christian Norgaard and back-up goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga this summer and could also add another striker if they can shift a few squad players, making them strong contenders to win their first Premier League crown in 21 years at 5/2 with Coral, Ladbrokes and Betway. But tellingly, Bet Victor have opened a book on who will be the Gunners' next manager, with Simone Inzaghe the favourite at 4/1 and Diego Simone 10/1 as it increasingly looks like it's win or bust for Mikel. Scottie Scheffler's first public appearance since winning his first Claret Jug by winning the Open at Royal Portrush was at the premiere of Happy Gilmore 2, starring Adam Sandler, in New York. The original is nowhere near as good as Caddyschack in our book, but in any case Scheff will be able to reflect at leisure on the merits of the two comedies as he misses the 3M Open on the outskirts of Minnesota. More Trending Tony Finau joined the world No.1 on the red carpet for the long-awaited film and is 30/1 to top the leaderboard on Sunday while Scottish Open winner Chris Gotterup, who stood tall when finishing a solo third near the Giant's Causeway, is 20/1 with the same firms. World youth champion Gian van Veen landed our bet to beat Danny Noppert by more than 2.5 legs at the Winter Gardens and he can beat James Wade at 3/4 with Ladbrokes and Coral in round three while Stephen Bunting is 10/11 with William Hill and bet365 to power past Jonny Clayton after his 12-10 success against Gary Anderson. MORE: Arsenal urged to sign free agent after £63m Viktor Gyokeres transfer MORE: Arsenal hero makes confident goals prediction for 'machine' Viktor Gyokeres MORE: Premier League club tipped to land treble after impressive summer transfer window
The Independent
20 minutes ago
- The Independent
Bayern Munich enter race to sign Chelsea target Xavi Simons
Bayern Munich have entered the race to sign Chelsea target Xavi Simons, the PA news agency understands. The London club are understood to be in direct talks with Simons' club RB Leipzig. However, Chelsea's negotiations could be complicated by German champions Bayern Munich expressing an interest. Netherlands international Simons is a Barcelona youth product who moved to Paris St Germain in 2019. He spent a season with PSV Eindhoven in 2022-23 before returning to PSG under a buy-back clause. He spent the 2023-24 season on loan to RB Leipzig before making the move permanent in January of this year. Bayern declined to comment regarding Simons. Chelsea have been approached for comment. It has been reported that Chelsea's deal for Simons could involve Carney Chukwuemeka moving in the opposite direction. Chukwuemeka spent the second half of last season on loan to Borussia Dortmund. Chelsea have already brought in forward Joao Pedro from Brighton for a reported £60million, as well as Jamie Gittens from Dortmund. Noni Madueke has left the Blues to join Arsenal, while goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic is another to have departed Stamford Bridge so far this summer.
Scottish Sun
20 minutes ago
- Scottish Sun
‘Is it behind closed doors?' – Fans baffled as Arsenal face AC Milan in half empty stadium
Arsenal did showcase one of their new kits GUNNER SKIP IT 'Is it behind closed doors?' – Fans baffled as Arsenal face AC Milan in half empty stadium Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) FANS have been left baffled as Arsenal play AC Milan in a near-empty stadium in pre-season. The Gunners are currently travelling through Asia as part of the tour ahead of the 2025/26 Premier League campaign. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 4 There were loads of empty seats for Arsenal's match against AC Milan 4 The two teams were playing at the National Stadium in Singapore Credit: Getty Arsenal will face Newcastle and Tottenham during the trip, but their first match was against Italian giants AC Milan. Mikel Arteta's side faced with the Rossoneri at the Singapore National Stadium in Kallang, Singapore. Many were expecting the match to be played in front of a sell-out crowd, but the reality was much different. The stadium appeared to be half empty as the match took place with loads of empty seats visable around the pitch. READ MORE ARSENAL NEWS GUNNER RETURN Ex-Arsenal starlet jailed over £600k cannabis plot signs for new club Fans took to social media completely baffled, with some suggesting that the game was being played behind closed doors. One posted: "Is it a behind-closed-doors game? Why is nobody in the stands?" A second wrote: "Arsenal Vs Milan is practically empty." A third joked: "I knew Arsenal weren't a big club, but I didn't realise they were this small? Look how empty the stadium is." JOIN SUN VEGAS: GET £50 BONUS A fourth said: "Arsenal have no motion, stadium is half empty." A fifth asked: "Why did Arsenal travel all the way to Singapore just to play in an empty stadium?" Mikel Arteta says his Arsenal squad are eager to win the Premier League title after coming so close last season Another added: "Have you seen how many empty seats there are against Milan here in Singapore." Arsenal did showcase their new dark blue away kit in the match. The unveiling of the shirt left club supporters convinced that Viktor Gyokeres was signing due to Riccardo Calafiori's gesture. Arteta also gave a first start to new signing Christian Norgaard, who lined up alongside the likes of Declan Rice and Ethan Nwaneri from the off. 4 Arsenal's players picked up their first minutes of pre-season action Credit: Getty 4 One Arsenal fan that turned up did the Viktor Gyokeres celebration Credit: Getty Other new signings Kepa Arrizabalaga and Martin Zubimendi started on the bench. While Noni Madueke was not available due to him having time off, as he played for Chelsea in the Club World Cup. Arsenal's pre-season tour Here are Arsenal's next matches in their pre-season tour... Sunday, July 27: Arsenal vs Newcastle - Singapore National Stadium, Singapore (12:30pm BST) Arsenal vs Newcastle - Singapore National Stadium, Singapore (12:30pm BST) Thursday, July 31: Arsenal vs Tottenham - Kai Tak Stadium, Hong Kong (12:30pm BST) Arsenal vs Tottenham - Kai Tak Stadium, Hong Kong (12:30pm BST) Wednesday, August 6: Arsenal vs Villarreal - Emirates Stadium, London (5pm BST) Arsenal vs Villarreal - Emirates Stadium, London (5pm BST) Saturday, August 9: Arsenal vs Athletic Club - Emirates Stadium, London (5pm BST) Join SUN CLUB for the Arsenal Files every Friday plus in-depth coverage and exclusives from The Emirates
