Coventry City are set to receive a significant cash boost with former striker Viktor Gyokeres reportedly close to a return to England.
Portuguese publication leonino.pt are reporting that the 26-year-old Sweden international is set to leave Sporting Lisbon for Arsenal, just 12 months after joining from the Sky Blues for a £20 million fee including add-ons which have been reached.
The Championship side agreed a sell-on fee when selling the Swede, believed to be 10% of any profit made in a subsequent deal. With Gyokeres’ Sporting contract including an £86 million release clause, a move to the Emirates would see Coventry pocket a tidy £6.6 million.
A deal to bring the striker to London is apparently near, with ‘financial details’ proving to be the only obstacle to getting a deal done.
Prior to moving to the Estadio Jose Alvalade, Gyokeres was on the books at several English clubs, moving to Brighton and Hove Albion from his native Sweden in 2018. He made eight appearances for the Seagulls, scoring once, being sent on loan from the AMEX Stadium multiple times.
As well as a spell at German side St Pauli, the Sweden international, who has six goals in 20 international caps, spent time at Swansea City before joining Coventry initially on loan. That loan was made into a permanent move in July 2022, with Gyokeres scoring 43 goals during his time at the Coventry Building Society Arena, earning him a move to Portugal.
In his singular season in Lisbon, the Swede netted 43 times across all competitions as his side won the Primeira Liga under highly-rated manager Ruben Amorim, with Gyokeres winning the league’s golden boot award. As well as success in the league Gyokeres also helped Sporting to the Europa League Round of 16 and the final of the Taca de Portugal, where they lost to rivals Porto.
Should a move to North London materialise, Gyokeres would likely be tasked with leading the line for a side looking to win their first Premier League since 2004, having come close in the last two campaigns but arguably lacking a clinical number nine.
Any move would hugely benefit the West Midlands outfit, who are looking to build on a 2023-24 season where they finished 9th in the Championship, narrowly missing out on the play-offs. The previous season they were a game away from the Premier League, losing to Luton Town in the play-off final. If their previous star man gets his big move, it would help the Sky Blues make further moves in the transfer market ahead of the new campaign and could be the catalyst for them to finally reach the top-flight.
Writer’s View
This could potentially be huge for Coventry City. Gyokeres is clearly deserving of his move to Arsenal, and Coventry’s wise negotiating with Sporting sees them in line to benefit, highlighting how key sell-on clauses can be for EFL sides.
The Sky Blues will be looking to kick on from the last two campaigns in what could be considered a fairly weak Championship this year, and any money raised from a Gyokeres transfer could help them do just that.