Tony Adams told Arsenal to sign ‘fantastic’ striker instead of Viktor Gyokeres, it would’ve been a disaster

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Tony Adams is one of Arsenal’s greatest-ever players.

The legendary Englishman spent his entire career as a Gunner and played 658 games for the club. He won four league titles and is fondly regarded as Mr Arsenal.

Since retiring and becoming a pundit, the 58-year-old has voiced several bold opinions about his old club. Adams recently wanted Declan Rice to replace Martin Odegaard as the captain of Arsenal.

Over the summer, the former defender also urged the Gunners to sign one player instead of Viktor Gyokeres. It’s a good thing that Andrea Berta didn’t listen to him.

Tony Adams urged Arsenal to sign Ollie Watkins instead of Viktor Gyokeres

Ollie Watkins has been on Arsenal’s radar for a long time.

The England international has done a ‘fantastic‘ job at Aston Villa over the years and was regarded as one of the best forwards in the Premier League.

Arsenal tried to sign Watkins in the January transfer window, but Villa’s demands proved to be too much in the end for Mikel Arteta’s side.

In the summer, Arsenal brought in Gyokeres from Sporting CP, but Adams was not particularly happy with that signing.

He wanted the Gunners to sign Watkins instead.

He said on Indo Sport: “[Gyokeres]… I don’t know yet. He’s not tried and tested.

“I would have liked to have seen them get Ollie Watkins, to be honest with you. He’s a Gooner, he might have given us a year and we might have won the title.”

Ollie Watkins to Arsenal would’ve been a disastrous move – his stats explain why

Watkins has always been among the goals for Aston Villa, but he hasn’t had a great start to the 2025/26 season.

The 29-year-old has played seven games for Unai Emery’s side so far this term and is yet to score or assist a single goal.

Watkins even missed a penalty in Villa’s Europa League clash against Bologna on Thursday.

Gyokeres, on the other hand, has scored three goals in five Premier League games despite having very limited service.

That shows that Arsenal were right to snub Watkins and go for Gyokeres.