Arsenal miss deadline for ‘bad professional’ Viktor Gyokeres as transfer hits another snag

Arsenal will fly out on their pre-season tour of Asia without having wrapped up the signing of Viktor Gyokeres, much to the frustration of manager Mikel Arteta and with Fabrizio Romano providing details of the final hurdle needed to secure the deal.

The Gunners have been working feverishly to try and wrap up the signing of the prolific Swedish marksman after sporting director Andrea Berta convinced Arteta to abandon his long-standing interest in Benjamin Sesko. However, agreeing a deal to bring the Sporting CP striker to Arsenal has proved extremely difficult and fraught with difficulties.

However, after weeks of talks – many of them intense – the Gunners and Sporting are finally close to the finish line and have agreed on a package worth €63.5m (£54.9m, $73.6m) up front, plus a further €10m (£8.6m, $11.5m) in add-ons for Gyokeres.

Indeed, it was revealed earlier this week that Arsenal had relented to Sporting’s request over the terms of those bonuses, which are four very easy-to-achieve targets that virtually guaranteed the additional fee.

However, there remains a few issues to fix, and, with the clubs at odds over some final issues – more on that later – the Gunners have missed the self-imposed deadline that Arteta set for the 27-year-old’s arrival, having wanted a deal done before Saturday and the club’s departure for their pre-season tour of Asia.

According to A Bola, Gyokeres has remained in Sweden and will not be part of the Gunners’ tour, with their first match scheduled for Wednesday against AC Milan in Singapore.

And if Arsenal are to get a deal for Gyokeres over the line, the striker will now likely need to wait until August 6 when the Gunners host Villarreal in their first pre-season game back from Asia.

At the same time, Gyokeres has refused to return to training with Sporting CP, who still officially hold his registration. And having packed up his belongings and moved out of his Lisbon home in anticipation of the transfer, the marksman has been labelled a ‘bad professional’ by the Portuguese media.

‘Gyokeres is showing the world that he’s a bad professional,’ said Record director Bernardo Ribeiro.

‘Throwing a tantrum by not showing up when he has a contract and is paid on time.’

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Fabrizio Romano reveals final details of Arsenal, Gyokeres transfer delay

CNN Portugal’s Bruno Andrade has also warned Gyokeres about flying to Asia before a deal is done, commenting: ‘If Gyokeres travels with Arsenal without the deal done, it’s a mistake and stupidity.

‘It is not only a mistake but also stupidity because, legally, later he will suffer the consequences.

‘When he already knows the process will be finalised, he can travel. And then it’s okay. Sporting wins, Arsenal wins and, mainly, the player wins.’

In addition to the clauses, Sporting also want some bonuses added into the deal. And while Arsenal are proposing €5m (£4.3m) and a further €5m in bonuses, Sporting are demanding €7.5m (£6.4m) as the first add-on payment, meaning there’s a €2.5m (£2.1m) gap holding up the process.

As a result, Fabrizio Romano has provided more details of what now needs to be done before the Gunners can officially welcome the former Coventry City man as their player.

Speaking on his YouTube channel, Romano stated: “The conversation is still ongoing. The agents of the player are still in London to try and resolve the agreement between all parties involved, Sporting, Arsenal.

“[On the] player side, everything is okay, five-year contract, Gyokeres is fighting to go to Arsenal. But obviously, it’s really important to agree on the add-ons.

“They are really on it, every single hour, every single minute. Arsenal and Sporting are working on this deal.

“So as soon as it will be agreed, I will let you know, but they are still working on the add-ons.

“On Sunday, there were reports of a deal done… it was not done, it was simply not done. It was close, for sure, because they agreed on the first part of the fee, but not the add-ons.”

Romano added Arsenal are “not happy” with Sporting, who keep moving the goalposts and “fighting on every single detail.”

Arsenal latest: New signing accidentally announced; Liverpool hijack complete

Meanwhile, Arsenal have accidentally confirmed the signing of Valencia centre-back Cristhian Mosquera during the announcement of Noni Madueke’s arrival from Chelsea.

Elsewhere, a departing Real Madrid player has given strong advice to Rodrygo about his future as Arsenal and Liverpool push to sign the Brazil international forward.

The Gunners have also successfully hijacked a planned Liverpool signing for a 17-year-old striker prospect, with Romano confirming a deal has now been ‘agreed’ and the ‘documents being prepared’.

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