"He will leave next week": Arsenal fans fuel Barcelona and Gyokeres speculation
Viktor Gyokeres stayed on the bench throughout Arsenal's 3-0 win over Coventry, and his failure to feature has sparked fresh speculation over the Swedish striker's future at the club.
The Gunners opened the defence of their Premier League title in comfortable fashion, with Kai Havertz, Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard all on target at the Emirates Stadium.
Before kick-off, the club paraded new defender Ezri Konsa in front of the fans following his 55 million pound switch from Aston Villa.
Bruno Guimaraes' absence was the only sour note. He is nursing an injury that Mikel Arteta has confirmed is not serious.
Gyökeres out of the picture
But the focus turned to Gyokeres, who stayed on the bench and never got on the pitch. Havertz, meanwhile, played the full 90.
Only five times since joining Arsenal has the Swedish striker failed to feature.
Gyokeres scored 21 goals across all competitions last season. Now he finds himself linked with a move to Spain.
Earlier reports floated the idea of using him in a swap deal for Atletico Madrid's Julian Alvarez, before fresh speculation tied him to Barcelona.
Speculation over Gyökeres and Barcelona: "What a team Arteta has built"
Speculation only grew once word spread that Gyokeres' agent had been in Barcelona since Monday. His absence against Coventry convinced a number of Arsenal fans that an exit was imminent.
Arsenal, meanwhile, remain in the frame for Alvarez, and Gary Neville has urged the club to go and land the Argentine striker.
Neville told Sky Sports: "What a team Arteta has built, and if he adds another striker to this group, I don't see how any team will be able to stop him".
He added: "We think Alvarez wants to move to Barcelona, but if Arsenal can sign him, it would light this place up, because you would have a world-class striker alongside defenders and midfielders of the same calibre".
Clear indication: "he will leave next week"
The website The Standard shed light on how Arsenal fans reacted to Gyokeres being left on the bench against Coventry, and what some of them read into it as a hint of an imminent exit.
The site rounded up a sample of that fan speculation. The account 1886 on X said: "Merino playing at Gyokeres' expense. It seems his days are numbered," referring to the Swedish star.
The account AJ wrote: "Yes, this confirms the theory 100%. Gyokeres would never have accepted sitting on the bench, making Kai (Havertz) the first option despite the vast difference. His (Gyokeres') agent was in Barcelona for a reason. It seems he will leave next week."
Another was blunt: "Gyokeres did not play any minute today. For a player who was the biggest striker deal last year, this seems a very clear indicator. I would not rule out his departure during the current transfer window."
Barcelona still haven't sorted out their new striker deal. Coach Hansi Flick needs to settle the issue before the window shuts, especially given the severe shortage at centre-forward, a position he trialled a number of players in during pre-season, chief among them the Egyptian Hamza Abdelkarim "18 years old".
