Arsenal’s €55m bid for Viktor Gyökeres has triggered furious accusations in Portugal, with Sporting CP rejecting claims of a secret clause that would allow the striker to leave for €60m plus add-ons
Tensions between Sporting CP, Arsenal, and Viktor Gyökeres‘s camp could be on the verge of escalating after Portuguese newspaper Record accused the striker’s agent of colluding with Arsenal to exploit a disputed release clause.
In the wake of Arsenal’s reported offer of €55 million plus €10 million in variables, Record’s deputy director Vítor Pinto claimed that “the collusion between Gyökeres’ agent and Arsenal was all well and good until the secret clause was discovered”.
The clause in question, agreed according to the agent Hasan Çetinkaya, would allow the striker to leave Lisbon for €60 million plus performance-based bonuses.
Sporting president Frederico Varandas has publicly denied any such clause exists. “Sporting will not demand the termination clause, but they should know me better by now: threats, blackmail and insults with me do not work,” he said. “One thing I can guarantee: Viktor Gyökeres will not leave for €60 million plus €10 million.”
The clause, allegedly negotiated last September in meetings between Çetinkaya and then-sporting director Hugo Viana, was reportedly never signed off formally by Sporting and, according to Varandas, never involved Gyökeres directly.
Viana has since joined Manchester City.
Varandas admitted there had been a gentleman’s agreement not to demand the full €100 million release clause, acknowledging the forward’s age and desire to play in the Champions League. However, he insisted the final price would be tied to the player’s performance.
“I said this: there’s no point in setting a price, because I don’t know what’s going to happen in a year’s time,” he said. “I don’t know if Viktor is going to have a serious knee injury, like he’s had before; he could have a disappointing season.
“It’s going to be the first year he’s going to play in the Champions League, which is where the sharks will really be paying attention.” He then added that he had promised to “adjust the price to Viktor’s performance”, which could be “40, 60 or 80 million euros”.
Following an extraordinary season in which Gyökeres scored 54 goals and provided 13 assists across all competitions, Varandas now believes the Swedish international’s valuation should rise beyond the €70 million mark.
The only formal bid so far has come from Arsenal, according to reports from Portugal. Other clubs, including Juventus, Atlético Madrid, and Manchester United, have expressed interest, but none has submitted an offer.
In Portugal, Arsenal are said to be torn between Gyökeres and Benjamin Šeško, who the club tried to sign last summer. In England, it is being reported that the club want both and, given, the level of reporting, I would be inclined to agree with the latter assumption.
In Sweden, they are reporting that the fallout has deepened. Aftonbladet, via Tribuna Expresso, claim that Çetinkaya suspects Sporting of leaking confidential medical information related to knee surgery Gyökeres underwent last May, allegedly in an attempt to scare off potential buyers.
Gyökeres, under contract until 2028, has chosen to remain silent for now. “There’s a lot to be said right now, much of it false. I’ll speak when it’s appropriate,” he wrote on Instagram.
There is, of course, no evidence to suggest Arsenal have colluded with anyone.