Arsenal star’s dad hails son’s ‘scary’ heroics | OneFootball

Viktor Gyokeres capped a decisive World Cup play-off run for Sweden with another big goal, prompting an emotional reaction from his father afterwards.

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Viktor Gyokeres sent Sweden to the World Cup in the sort of fashion strikers dream of, and his father admitted afterwards that the whole thing felt almost unreal.

The Arsenal forward followed his hat-trick against Ukraine by deciding the play-off against Poland, striking in the 88th minute of a 3-2 win to seal qualification for the 2026 finals in North America.

For his father, Stefan Gyokeres, the scale of it was difficult to take in.

Speaking afterwards, he said: “It’s complete madness and on top of that it’s him scoring the decisive goal.

“First, he took down Ukraine [with a hat trick], along with the team, and now he can do it. It’s so epic. He’s always been dangerous in front of goal, but this is scary.”

Photo by Michael Campanella/Getty Images

“It’s all so surreal,” he continued. “We weren’t dominating the game. It was a team effort. The whole team fought all the time,” he said.

“I can’t describe how proud I am, but I’ve always been proud of him. I’m just as proud of my other son. As parents, we are proud of our children.”

He added that ambition had always driven Viktor, saying that “he always strove to rise and always wanted more, no matter what level he was at.”

That edge was there again against Poland. With the game level at 2-2 and Sweden still needing one decisive moment, Gyokeres produced it.

Photo by Michael Campanella/Getty Images

Having already scored three times against Ukraine in the first play-off, he settled the second with two minutes of normal time left, taking Sweden through and underlining just how central he has become to their qualification push.

Afterwards, the striker himself struggled to put it into words. “It’s hard to put this into words, this is what we all wanted and [to] get to do it at home, it’s indescribable,” he said.

“And the way we do it. We believe in it to the last. That’s why we’re in the World Cup.”

He also made clear that this had not been a polished or comfortable night. “[We were] Maybe a little too defensive, but you had to take what was needed today. As long as we win football games, I couldn’t care less!

Photo by Michael Campanella/Getty Images

“You try to be connected and in the situations, to be present, and I felt that I was at the end. It’s hard to find words on how it felt after the goal.”

He added: “I’ll remember that for a long time.”

By the final whistle, Sweden supporters were singing his name, an entirely fitting response to a player who had got them through both play-off matches and into the finals.

Asked what it felt like to hear that from the stands, Gyokeres said: “It’s just joy, goosebumps! I love them all.”