Fulham - Arsenal: Is Arteta the one holding back Gyokeres?

18/10/2025 08:02:00 soccer

Last month, Viktor Gyokeres went to France to accept the Gerd Muller award, which honors the player with the most goals scored in the previous season across both club and national team competitions. Yet now, Gyokeres is causing worry among Arsenal fans.

The question increasingly asked is: "Where have Gyokeres’s goals gone?" Since his last goal on September 13, 2025, against Nottingham Forest, he has endured a streak of eight games without scoring for club or country.

Gyokeres’s Goal Drought

Overall, Gyokeres has played more than 600 minutes without scoring a single goal. In matches against MU, Liverpool, and Man City, he didn’t even register a shot on target—a situation that occurred only once before during his time in Portugal.

Joining Arsenal in July 2025 for a transfer fee of 73.5 million euros, Gyokeres was expected to be the perfect fit for Mikel Arteta’s attacking line. Before that, he had an impressive record in Portugal with 97 goals in 102 matches over two seasons.

However, after more than two months playing for Arsenal, Gyokeres has only scored 3 goals in 10 matches and has been goalless for the last 8 games. This form has caused fans to lose patience, while experts have begun to question his ability to adapt to the Premier League—a tough competition demanding quick adaptation.

On the international stage, Gyokeres’s situation is no better. During the October call-up, Sweden lost 0-2 to Switzerland and 0-1 at home against Kosovo, almost extinguishing their World Cup qualification hopes.

Gyokeres failed to score in both matches and became the target of criticism from his home media. These poor results led to serious consequences: coach Jon Dahl Tomasson was sacked, and Gyokeres’s fighting spirit was called into question.

Despite recently winning a prestigious award, Gyokeres’s career is going through its most challenging period since his move to the Emirates. However, the blame is not entirely on the Swedish striker.

Viktor Gyokeres is currently enduring a prolonged goal drought

Is Gyokeres being held back by Arteta’s tactics?

The main reason for Gyokeres’s decline is believed to be the difference in tactical systems. At Sporting Lisbon, he was the focal point of every attack, frequently receiving the ball and supported by teammates who catered to his direct movement style.

At Arsenal, however, he must adapt to a possession-based game, with short passes and more dynamic movement, rarely receiving the ball in favorable positions. His incomplete adaptation to Arteta’s philosophy has prevented him from fully showcasing his abilities.

Sports writer Dan Smith suspects that "Arteta’s system is holding Gyokeres back," quoting Jamie Carragher’s opinion that "Arsenal’s problem isn’t finishing, but creating chances."

“Therefore, the question should not be ‘why isn’t Gyokeres scoring more goals?’ but rather ‘why isn’t he being given the chances to do so?’” Dan Smith wrote. He also claimed that under a different coach, Gyokeres might have had more scoring opportunities.

Meanwhile, journalist Isaan Khan (Daily Mail) revealed a surprising detail: Arteta wanted Gyokeres to adapt gradually, but Kai Havertz’s injury forced the Swedish striker into a central role earlier than planned.

Although scoring few goals, Gyokeres contributes to the overall play by constantly drawing defenders’ attention, creating space for Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli to operate on the wings.

However, with a transfer fee exceeding 70 million euros, the benchmark for Gyokeres’s success remains goals, and he must end his drought soon. To "unlock" Gyokeres, Mikel Arteta may need to make tactical adjustments.

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