Despite being the reigning Premier League champions, Liverpool have as big an issue in their squad as any other team contending in the Premier League, their striker. The No. 9 position was split up by a rotation of a true striker Darwin Núñez playing just over a thousand minutes, and a makeshift forward position with Luis Diaz, Cody Gakpo, Diogo Jota, and even Mohamed Salah filling that role. While Liverpool built their attack under Klopp around Roberto Firmino, a false-9, The Reds are targeting a true, lethal goal scoring threat that they haven’t had as a striker since Luis Suárez.
Sporting’s Viktor Gyokeres has been linked with a move to the Premier League since his breakout campaign in 2023-24. But now after demanding an exit following a breakdown in trust between him and Sporting’s president Frederico Varandas, a move to the Premier League looks more certain than ever. The argument stemmed from the belief that Varandas promised the striker they would accept a 70-million euro bid for their striker, but Varandas has come out and that his promise was only to not demand the full 100-million euro release clause in his contract.
"I can guarantee that Viktor Gyokeres will not leave for 60m euros plus 10m euros because I never promised that." Varandas said in a press conference.
“One of the agent's biggest concerns was whether we would demand the termination clause. He wanted to guarantee certain things. And what was agreed? That Sporting would not demand a release clause now (BBC).
According to Portuguese newspaper Record, the Swedish striker has informed Sporting that he will refuse to return to the club as they look to win a third consecutive Primeira Liga title. In his two seasons at Sporting, Gyokeres has produced 99 goal contributions in 83 games across all competitions.
The former Brighton and Coventry striker has been linked with a move to Manchester United to play under former manager Ruben Amorim, as well as Arsenal. But reports from Portugal suggest that Liverpool are working to secure Gyokeres’ signature before their rivals can get a deal done.
His goal scoring and underrated link up-play makes him a perfect fit for Arne Slots side, with Salah having lacked a reliable partner since the days of Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane. While there are many teams vying for his signature, the defending Premier League champions remain right in the mix.