Arsenal vs Manchester United: The advantages each club holds in transfer race for Viktor Gyokeres

The biggest transfer saga of the 2025 window, Viktor Gyokeres’s transfer from Sporting to Arsenal is still not finalized and has taken a turn that could change the course of negotiations.

Rivals Manchester United have apparently decided to make an offer for the Swedish striker, pleasing the Portuguese club. The information comes from the newspaper A Bola.

The Gunners have shown no sign of making a new move for Europe’s top scorer since last Monday (14), when their offer was rejected due to disagreement over add-ons, and there is a chance the deal may not happen. But there is still hope for the London side, as well as for the Red Devils, who, aligned with Sporting, are facing resistance from the player.

Sporting prefers Manchester United’s bid, who have a managerial advantage

This Sunday, United made an offer between €70m and €80m (between £61m and £69m), exactly what Sporting are demanding and are “unyielding” about receiving for Gyokeres. As a result, talks have progressed with the Lions.

The Old Trafford side also has the advantage of having Ruben Amorim on the sidelines, the former coach of the Portuguese team and the man responsible for guiding the Swedish national team striker through the two best seasons of his career.

The 27-year-old player, however, sees things differently and does not want to join the Manchester Reds for several reasons.

Gyokeres, on the other hand, wants Arsenal

Sporting’s number nine wants to play at the Emirates Stadium and has turned down today’s approach from the rival. What weighs in is Arsenal’s history of fighting for the Premier League title for years, finishing runners-up in the last three editions, and being in the 2025-26 Champions League. United, on the other hand, will only play in domestic competitions, having finished 15th in last season’s English top flight.

“The striker remains firm in his choice,” wrote A Bola. Both the player and his agents see Manchester’s offer as a way for the Portuguese board to put pressure on them.

The problem for the Gunners in signing their dream centre-forward has been money. The offer six days ago was €63.5 million (approximately £55m), plus €10m in bonuses (approximately £8.7m).

The Swede’s agent even gave up a €7m (approximately £6m) commission to facilitate the deal, but Sporting was bothered by the bonuses, considering the targets difficult to achieve, and is holding out for €80m (approximately £69m).

With Arsenal silent for almost a week, in Portugal there is a sense the deal could collapse. It nearly fell through completely last Saturday (19), according to the newspaper.

Gyokeres has missed nine days of Sporting’s pre-season training, and the Lisbon club has notified him to report. At the moment, the player is on vacation on the beaches of Mallorca, Spain.

Sporting and Manchester United have already started their pre-season friendlies, while Arsenal will play their first in three days.

Sporting will officially kick off their season on the last day of July with the Portuguese Super Cup, while the local league starts on August 10. A week later, it’s the Premier League’s turn, with Gyokeres likely to be playing for one of the teams in red: either London’s or Manchester’s.

This article was originally published on Trivela.