Gary Neville has claimed that one Arsenal star looks like a ‘misfit’ in Mikel Arteta’s team.
Arsenal beat Nottingham Forest 3-0 at the Emirates on Saturday, courtesy of two goals from Martin Zubimendi and a strike from Viktor Gyokeres.
The Spaniard gave the Gunners the lead in the first half, thrashing a spectacular volley past Matz Sels, before later nodding home from a Leandro Trossard cross.
In between these goals, Gyokeres converted from close range after Eberechi Eze excellently played the ball across the box into his path.
The result sees Arteta’s side move up to second in the Premier League after four matches.
Gary Neville says Viktor Gyokeres looks like a ‘misfit’ in Arsenal’s team
Gyokeres now has three goals in four games for Arsenal.
Despite this, the 27-year-old is yet to convince many within the North London club’s fanbase and the media that he is the right man to lead the Gunners to glory.
However, his positive display against Forest should be seen as an encouraging sign that he’s heading in the right direction and beginning to adapt to the physicality of the Premier League.
Gary Neville was enthused by what he saw from Gyokeres, although the pundit did describe the striker as a ‘misfit’ compared to the smooth, technical players in Arsenal’s team.
“Gyokeres, good day for him,” the former Manchester United defender said on the Gary Neville Podcast.
“The problem with Arsenal is they’ve got so many silky players, Zubimendi, [Martin] Odegaard, [Noni] Madueke, Declan Rice, and then you look at Gyokeres, and he’s a misfit.
“He’s a misfit for that group of players in the sense that he’s not technically amazing. I actually liked that sort of contrast, the idea of having this battering ram who’s a little bit ungainly, and he sort of beats up small teams.”
Viktor Gyokeres’ statistics vs Nottingham Forest were encouraging
Neville thinks Gyokeres could score 20 goals or more this season for Arsenal, and on the basis of his display against Forest, this is certainly plausible.
The Sweden international produced a showing that looked significantly more encouraging in the numbers than previous performances.
| Viktor Gyokeres’ Statistics vs Nottingham Forest | |
| Minutes Played | 68 |
| Touches | 24 |
| Shots | 4 |
| Expected Goals | 0.84 |
| Key Passes | 1 |
| Accurate Passes | 7/10 (70%) |
| Touches in Opposition Box | 8 |
Managing zero shots away at Anfield and Old Trafford, Gyokeres had four efforts on goal against Forest, accumulating 0.84 expected goals.
He also managed eight touches in the box, meaning he was in dangerous positions to take chances more frequently.
However, he was also significantly more involved in build-up than he has been previously, managing 24 touches, far more than he’s had in each of his opening three games.
This will be incredibly encouraging for Arteta and his coaching staff.
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