Leeds United needed a striker during the January 2023 transfer window and ended up signing Georginio Rutter in a club record deal, but they also considered signing Viktor Gyokeres from Coventry.
Leeds’ transfer business during their three seasons in the Premier League was a big reason why the club is now trying to return to the Championship.
Victor Orta made a number of costly mistakes at Leeds, which ultimately led to his departure and the club’s relegation, and failing to buy a goal-scoring striker was a major flaw.
Leeds showed interest in Viktor Gyokeres in January 2023.
Last season, Viktor Gyokeres appeared to be the main player in the Championship for promotion-chasing Coventry City, scoring 21 and assisting 12 as his team came within a penalty shootout of securing promotion.
Life could have been different for the Swede, though, as The Athletic repeated rumors that the 25-year-old was a target for Leeds during the January 2023 transfer window under Jesse Marsch:
“Leeds had looked at a profile of player more like Coventry City striker Viktor Gyokeres, who was neither cheap nor truly for sale as Mark Robins’ side pushed for the Championship play-offs, but instead signed Rutter to bolster Jesse Marsch’s attack in a bid to stay up.”
As previously said, Leeds instead chose to chase Georginio Rutter for a £36 million sum, which appeared fairly naïve from a neutral standpoint at the time, given his minimal involvement on the route to relegation.
Leeds may regret not paying more for Gyokeres following Sporting CP’s form.
Leeds fans may believe that all is well that ends well, considering that Rutter is proving to be a critical cog in our current promotion campaign, but the club nevertheless signed an extremely gifted player.
However, Gyokeres’ climb to prominence following a £20 million transfer to Sporting CP has been genuinely remarkable.
He has wasted no time in continuing his spectacular goalscoring exploits in Lisbon, appearing 39 times in all competitions for his new club, scoring 36 goals and registering 14 assists for a total of 50 goal involvements and 1.28 per game played.
Sporting cannot be pleased with his clever investment, as they are already in talks to bind him down to a new deal that increases his release clause to about £102 million, according to A Bola.
As talk continues online, Arsenal might be Gyokeres’ next destination, proving the striker would have been a steal at whatever amount he might have cost in 2023.
