Mikel Arteta Sends Strong Message To Viktor Gyokeres Amid Goal Drought

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Mikel Arteta has challenged Swedish forward, Viktor Gyokeres, to stay calm and confident despite his recent struggles in front of goal, reminding the striker that handling pressure is part of wearing Arsenal’s No. 9 shirt.

Viktor Gyokeres who was prolific for Sporting Lisbon with an incredible 97 goals in 102 appearances, has found life in England far tougher.

Gyokeres has failed to score in his last six matches for Arsenal and is now on an eight-game run without a goal for club or country. His last came in the 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest back in September.

So far, the 26-year-old has managed just three goals in Arsenal colours, with two of those coming in the opening home fixture against Leeds. Despite the barren spell, Arteta insists he still believes in his striker’s all-round contribution.

“I told him before the first meeting: ‘the nine that I want is a nine that when he doesn’t score for six or eight games, he can handle that. If not, you have to go somewhere else because the expectation is going to be there,’” Arteta said.

He added, “If you put on a nine shirt for Arsenal, you have to be able to say, ‘OK, six games, if I don’t score, I’m a different player? I start to act differently.’ No, I want much more of the same of what he’s doing.”

Arteta pointed out that every top striker faces quiet spells and praised Gyokeres’ influence beyond goals. “You see the history of the No. 9s. You’re going to have moments like this. He brings so much to the team. He creates space and solutions for a lot of the players around him. And with the talent that we have in the team, I’m sure that everybody, including him, will benefit from that,” the Spanish coach said.

With Kai Havertz recovering from knee surgery, Gyokeres will continue to lead Arsenal’s attack when they visit Fulham this weekend. But the Gunners will be without captain Martin Odegaard for at least a month after the Norwegian suffered a knee injury in the win over West Ham before the international break.

“There is no definite date for Martin’s return, but he’s evolving well and he will be back in a few weeks,” Arteta said. “He’s in a really good place. He cannot afford to be in a different mindset. He’s the captain. He needs to drive the standard. He needs to be the example.”

Arsenal sit top of the Premier League table after Liverpool’s recent stumbles, and a win over Fulham would stretch their lead to four points ahead of Liverpool’s clash with Manchester United on Sunday.

Asked if his team can maintain their place at the top until the end of the season, Arteta said, “It is possible. We will if we continue to win a lot of football matches. I’m sure we will be there.”

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