“The development of Viktor Gyökeres is fantastic” – Niko Kovac praises €100m goalscorer | OneFootball

Viktor Gyökeres has scored six goals in seven Champions League appearances for Sporting CP and is expected to return to the starting line-up when they host Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday night. Speaking in his pre-match press conference, Niko Kovac heaped praise on the Swedish forward, who has a reported €100m release clause with Manchester United showing interest.

“The development of Viktor Gyökeres is fantastic,” said Kovac. “But he won’t be playing alone tomorrow. Sporting are number one in Portugal, so we have to be ready.”

Gyökeres started on the bench against FC Porto at the weekend after returning from injury but should start ahead of Conrad Harder. With 34 goals and seven assists in 34 games across all competitions for Sporting CP this season, Emre Can and Co. will have to be at their best to keep the 26-year-old quiet.

“You can only do that as a team,” said Can, when asked about defending against Gyökeres. “I’ll give it my all, and so will my teammates. And then we hope that we can get him under control.”

GGFN | Daniel Pinder