Over the course of the last two seasons, Arsenal have seemingly been a striker away from championship glory. Never had that been more apparent than last season, where injuries to both Gabriel Jesus and Kai Havertz left the Gunners with Mikel Merino playing in a makeshift striker role. Mikel Arteta’s side duly finished as runners-up in the Premier League for the third straight season, as well as suffering a heartbreaking Champions League semi-final exit in the process.
Viktor Gyökeres Revitalizes The Gunners
Now, however, there is a feeling that the Gunners have finally secured the missing piece of the puzzle. Arsenal’s signing of Viktor Gyökeres for a reported €65.80m is an audacious one. The Swedish sensation has been prolific over the last two years for Sporting CP, netting a mighty 97 goals in 102 appearances and helping the Lisbon outfit to back-to-back Portuguese league titles. Now, online betting sites feel that similar success could be just around the corner at the Emirates.
The latest odds from the popular Bovada betting site currently have Arsenal listed as a 3.25 second favorite for the title next season, narrowly behind reigning champions and 2.80 favorites Liverpool. But can Gyökeres truly be the difference-maker North London has craved? His scoring exploits in Portugal certainly suggest he can.
Arsenal are certainly no strangers to fielding Swedes. Winger Freddie Ljungberg is one of the greatest ever Gunners, while Kim Källström played a starring role in helping Arsenal finally end their silverware drought by winning the 2014 FA Cup. Gyökeres, however, seems in a different league than those two, but where does he stack up in terms of the most expensive Swedes of all time? Let’s find out.
Alexander Isak
€70 million. That’s the price Newcastle United paid in 2022 to secure Alexander Isak from Real Sociedad and to signal their own transformation into serious contenders. The Swedish hitman’s blend of height, grace, and instinctive finishing arrived in England off the back of an impressive run in La Liga, but his goal-scoring output was never otherworldly. In San Sebastián, his 44 goals in 132 games became the stuff of highlight reels, but he has taken that up a notch since arriving on Tyneside.
How did the Toon Army respond? Initial scepticism soon gave way to excitement. Isak weathered the physical rigors of the English game and emerged as a linchpin, netting ten times in an injury-hit first Premier League campaign. Since then, however, he has gone on to become a superstar. 25 goals in all competitions in 2023/24, coupled with a career-best 27 goals last season, have seen his value skyrocket, with Liverpool recently having a £110m bid rejected to secure his services.
Isak has propelled Newcastle to the Champions League twice in three seasons, while also helping them claim their first piece of major silverware in 70 years with last season’s EFL Cup triumph, even netting in the Wembley final. Now, the Magpies must focus their efforts on retaining his services if they are to further gatecrash the Premier League’s upper echelons.
Zlatan Ibrahimović
When Barcelona shelled out €69.50m—and sent Samuel Eto’o to Inter as part of the deal—in 2009, the stage was set for a new chapter in Zlatan Ibrahimović’s already storied career. With the Nerazzurri, he had been a talisman: dominant, creative, unflinching under pressure. His legacy in Serie A was written in gold—back-to-back league titles, a staggering goal return, and a reputation for the spectacular.
But the Camp Nou presented fresh intrigue and challenge. Did the move live up to its seismic promise? Not quite.
Ibrahimović delivered 22 goals and four trophies in his first and only season in Catalonia, but tensions with manager Pep Guardiola became a media circus. Things intensified when Ibra was left out of a Champions League semifinal against former club Inter Milan. The Nerazzurri, led by the iconic Jose Mourinho, would shockingly emerge victorious against all odds, and soon the Swedish striker was on his way back to Milan… Albeit with AC, rather than Inter.
Viktor Gyökeres
With Arsenal parting with €65.80m to pry Viktor Gyökeres away from Sporting CP, the ambition is unmistakable. At Sporting, Gyökeres was a one-man attacking juggernaut, clinching back-to-back Golden Boots in the Primeira Liga and spearheading consecutive title charges. Accumulating 97 goals in just over a hundred games isn’t mere consistency—it’s dominance.
How did the transfer unfold? Arsenal, smarting from three straight Premier League runner-up finishes, wanted more than just a forward—they craved a difference-maker. Enter Gyökeres, whose international pedigree and imposing frame bring both explosive finishing and all-important tactical flexibility to Arteta’s meticulously constructed system. Now, the pressure is on to repay the show of faith that the Gunners have placed in him.
Anthony Elanga
Gyökeres isn’t the only Swede making headlines in the Premier League this summer. Anthony Elanga’s €61.40m switch to Newcastle has also grabbed the spotlight. After breaking through at Manchester United before flourishing at Nottingham Forest, the blistering winger had become one of the Premier League’s most electric wide men. Now, he heads to St. James’ Park to team up with compatriot Alexander Isak as the Magpies look to set up shop in the top four.