If you think of direct and classic number nines in the modern game, both Viktor Gyokeres and Romelu Lukaku are names who fit the mould.
Lukaku has had a hugely successful career in England and abroad, with Gyokeres now looking to follow a similar path.
Gyokeres has hit form lately, scoring two more against Sunderland today to keep his run going.
If Hugo Ekitike is the signing of the season, how would you describe Viktor Gyokeres?
Is Gyokeres being treated unfairly?
This season has been a learning curve for the Swede, with plenty of criticism coming his way prior to his recent improved spell.
Nevertheless, former Arsenal man Paul Merson was full of praise for Gyokeres ahead of the Sunderland game this weekend, and he made a noteworthy comparison to Lukaku’s time at Chelsea.
What Viktor Gyokeres is doing that Romelu Lukaku never did
Like any striker, Gyokeres is a man who looks like he feeds off being confident.
With that confidence comes goals and with the goals comes an improved level of performance overall.
Indeed, speaking on Sky Sports yesterday, Merson made a telling comparison when discussing Gyokeres and Lukaku.
“I watched a lot of Lukaku at Chelsea, when I, you know, when I go to Chelsea. He wasn’t looking for it. The ball would be down the left-hand side and he’d drift over to the right-hand side. He wasn’t really coming in to show. It wasn’t really his game, but he’s got to come every now and then,” Merson commented ahead of today’s clash with Sunderland.
“This lad does come up and show up. He does come, you know, he’s not like hiding away. He is coming, but I just think, just get him into the game. Just keep on feeding him in the ball, give him a little bit of confidence.
“If every professional footballer could do one thing, they’d bottle up their confidence. If you’ve got confidence, it’s a completely different game. And I think sometimes, him not touching the ball and the way the country is now, and the way we are with stats, you need to keep on giving him a couple of touches, feed him the ball.”
Viktor Gyokeres vs Romelu Lukaku
There is a gap in terms of the ages of Gyokeres and Lukaku in terms of their race to hit 10 Premier League goals but the comparisons in numbers are quite similar.
Gyokeres now has 23 Premier League games to his name and has scored eight goals.
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Lukaku, meanwhile, took 25 games to hit the 10 goal mark during a loan spell with West Brom.
Where Lukaku did improve was when he became among the players to hit 100 Premier League goals. The Belgian managed this in just 216 games, meaning he very nearly averaged a goal every two games.
If Gyokeres can somehow replicate that as the seasons go by, then Arsenal fans will be more than happy.
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