Ruben Amorim reacts to Manchester United’s defeat to Brentford (Photo by Richard Pelham/Getty Images)
Manchester United came very close to signing Victor Gokeres in the summer.
Jonathan Halkias, assistant to Victor Gokeres’ agent Hasan Centikaya, has revealed that Sporting CP were trying to negotiate a transfer for the striker to Manchester United “behind the scenes” of the player’s agent.
He said to Mais Futebol: “The move to Arsenal was also very good marketing for us. One of the problems with Sporting was that they tried to negotiate a move to Manchester United behind our backs. Manchester United offered a higher fee, so the deal went through.”
Gokeres eventually joined Arsenal, but the Portuguese club was willing to sell him to Manchester United. The Red Devils were offering them more money compared to the London club.
The 27-year-old was one of the best attacking players in the world last season, scoring 53 goals in all competitions. No wonder the top teams wanted to sign him. Manchester United needed to bring in a quality striker and were keen on the Sweden international. However, they were unable to cross the line and reach an agreement.
Manchester United ended up signing Benjamin Sesco instead. However, they were initially very interested in the Swedish attacker.
They will no doubt be hoping that the Slovenian international striker can prove himself in English football and establish himself as an essential asset for the club. Meanwhile, Gokeres has had a shaky start to his time at Arsenal and will look to establish himself as the country’s best striker.
Arsenal have not won the league title in recent seasons, but with the addition of a reliable finisher they will be hoping to win the league this time around.
The Sweden international showed his quality in last season’s Portuguese league and will now aim to establish himself as a key player in the Premier League. He has the physical and technical attributes to do well in England and is keen to reach peak form as soon as possible.
