Carragher ‘surprised’ Arsenal star hasn’t been dropped as Campbell sends blunt message | OneFootball

Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher was “quite surprised” that Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has chosen to stick with Viktor Gyokeres for most of the season.

The Sweden international scored a brace as Arsenal beat Spurs 4-1 in the North London Derby at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday.

Victory means Arteta’s Premier League leaders are back to five points clear of second-placed Manchester City, who have a game in hand on the Gunners.

Arsenal spent around £64m on Gyokeres over the summer transfer window as the Gunners looked to finally get a reliable centre-forward into their side.

Gyokeres scored 97 goals in 103 matches for Sporting CP before his move to the Premier League but he has failed to hit those heights during his time at the Emirates Stadium.

The Swede didn’t hit the ground running at Arsenal but he delivered his most complete performance as a Gunner on Sunday and is coming into form with six goals in his last eight matches in all competitions.

And Carragher admits he has been shocked that Arteta has stuck with Gyokeres but the Liverpool legend is a massive fan of the Swede’s mentality.

Carragher told Sky Sports: “The thing I like about Viktor Gyokeres is his mentality. I don’t think he’s a world-class striker or an amazing striker for Arsenal for the next five or years.

“But I absolutely love his mentality. There’s no lack of confidence with him, he just gets the ball and bangs it in, it’s Alan Shearer-like, that sort of mentality.

“As Gary Neville said on commentary, I think that’s the best we’ve seen Gyokeres play in an Arsenal shirt, it was an absolutely fantastic finish.

“He could be [vital] and what I would say is here, is credit the manager. I felt they had to come away from Gyokeres and I thought at some stage it might cost them.

“But the manager has stuck by him week after week and the strength he showed in this game, it was very Alan Shearer-like.

“We were looking at the strikers Arsenal had and I felt he was quite far down the pecking order and a few times I was quite surprised that Gyokeres was still in the team.

“But fair play to the manager because he’s kept him in and he’s repaid him in one of Arsenal’s biggest games of the season.”

Arsenal legend Sol Campbell insisted it was “about time” Gyokeres delivered in a big game in a blunt assessment of the former Coventry City striker’s performance.

Campbell said: “A 4-1 win away from home, keep going, keep rocking and we’re going to get there. We’re going to do it this year.

“Eze (was man of the match) but Gyokeres came close, it’s about time he turned up and I think those two goals are going to do him the world of good.”