Rio Ferdinand and Gary Lineker disagree on Viktor Gyokeres Arsenal theory

Rio Ferdinand and Gary Lineker Disagree on Viktor Gyokeres Arsenal Theory

Viktor Gyokeres scored his fourth Premier League goal of the season on Saturday, helping Arsenal secure a comfortable 2-0 away victory against Burnley, a team currently in the bottom five of the league table.

Despite this success, former player Gary Lineker criticized Gyokeres, suggesting the striker needs to start scoring in "big games." The 27-year-old Swede has so far scored only against lower-ranked teams, including Burnley, Leeds United, and Nottingham Forest, but has failed to find the net against top clubs like Liverpool, Manchester City, and Manchester United.

This inconsistency has led to accusations of Gyokeres being a "flat-track bully," a critique he also faced during his time at Sporting Lisbon, where he scored 97 goals in 102 appearances.

"I don't want to call him a flat-track bully, that's a bit unfair," Lineker said on The Rest Is Football. "The criticism that people perhaps would say is that what he did in Portugal, he didn't really score many goals against the top teams, and so far his goals have been against Burnley, Forest and Leeds. He needs to do it in some of the big games, but I think he's had a reasonable start."

Rio Ferdinand, on the other hand, dismissed the notion that Gyokeres is a flat-track bully, defending the striker's performances and contributions to Arsenal's recent success.

Summary

While Gary Lineker highlights Gyokeres' need to score against stronger teams, Rio Ferdinand supports the striker’s impact, recognizing his reasonable start to the Premier League season.

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Football London Football London — 2025-11-04

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