Saliba admits new Arsenal signing is ‘scary’ | OneFootball

William Saliba has admitted that Viktor Gyokeres is a scary player to come up against, and he’s glad to have the striker on his team now.

Photo via Arsenal.com

Given the links to multiple strikers throughout the summer so far, it’s no surprise that there’s been plenty of online debate about whether or not Viktor Gyokeres was the right choice for Arsenal over someone like Benjamin Sesko.

But from a player perspective, having faced Gyokeres in the Champions League last season, William Saliba admits the centre-forward is a scary opponent.

Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images

“We know how good he is, it’s scary to play against him,” Saliba said. “Of course, I’m so happy to have him in my club and I’m sure that he will help us to win games and win trophies.”

“[He is scary] because when you face a striker who scores goals, you have to be focused. But now he’s in our team and he will score for us, so that’s good.

“Our mindset is to win the Premier League and we will give everything from the first game. We have a lot of new players and they will hopefully help us to win this league.”

Photo by Gualter Fatia/Getty Images

Former Arsenal player Chuba Akpom recently suggested he’d prefer Gyokeres over Sesko, speaking before the Gunners began to advance on the signing.

“Gyokeres, for me, and it’s not even close to be honest,” Akpom said. “Honestly, it’s subjective isn’t it? You can talk about age with Sesko, but Gyokeres is ready now.

“I’ve played against him in the Championship, he took Coventry to the play-off finals basically alone, with one or two other players. And he’s gone to Portugal and scored… what is it? I don’t know how many goals, 50 goals in both seasons?

“If Arsenal are looking for now, then it’s Gyokeres.”

Photo by Gualter Fatia/Getty Images

Gyokeres’ goalscoring numbers are certainly intimidating, as no one scored more than him around Europe’s major top-flight leagues last season.

54 goals for Sporting and nine for Sweden meant the striker finished as top scorer in the Primeira Liga, the Taca da Liga, the Taca de Portugal, and the UEFA Nations League, and he also scored six Champions League goals despite only making six starts.

It’s no wonder opponents are intimidated by playing against the Swedish international.