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For Arsenal this season, Viktor Gyökeres has gone scoreless across 207 minutes of action—and the Gunners have logged far more playing time than that. For Sweden, he's contributed two goals in 165 minutes.
Gyökeres will return to Arsenal once the international break concludes, with Sweden still having two fixtures remaining against Bosnia and Herzegovina and Romania before next Monday, as he looks to cement himself as Mikel Arteta's first-choice No. 9.
Kai Havertz remains Arteta's preferred striker when fit. However, the German international, who missed a considerable portion of the past 18 months through injury, is once again receiving treatment. He picked up a hamstring strain while on duty with Germany last week. It is not believed to be a serious setback, though no timeline for his return has been provided.
Gyökeres netted the decisive goal in Sweden's UEFA Nations League win over Romania last Friday, then added the third in a 3–1 defeat of Poland on Monday. The former Sporting CP forward showed more quality in the second half than the first against Poland, but still made his presence felt when it mattered—a contribution made all the more significant given Alexander Isak's absence.
Following the Romania fixture, Gyökeres made his intentions clear to reporters: "I want to play."
Gyokeres Still Needs to Prove Himself in Arsenal Colors
For Gyökeres at Arsenal, this season has been a difficult one.
Arteta has handed him just 29 minutes of Premier League football out of a possible 450. He completed 90 minutes in the Carabao Cup against Ipswich Town but failed to find the net despite Arsenal scoring four—Gyökeres managed only one shot and registered a 0.05 xG. He also started in the Champions League against Napoli, recording just nine touches throughout.
Gyökeres's performances for Sweden, coinciding with renewed uncertainty surrounding Havertz, are making a case for him to be given a real opportunity. Even so, he still needs to back that up on the pitch.
When he arrived in 2025 following a remarkable 97-goal haul across two seasons in Portugal, Gyökeres was expected to be the clinical No. 9 Arsenal had been missing for years. He didn't quite deliver on that expectation. Despite largely serving as Havertz's understudy, he featured 55 times due to the German's injury absences. Gyökeres finished with 21 goals—a decent return—yet managed just one against a top-10 Premier League side, and none against the top five.
When club football resumes, Arsenal face a Leeds United side boasting one of the stingiest defenses in the division, having conceded just three goals in five matches—joint best in the league. That will be a stern examination that the Gunners need Gyökeres—should Havertz remain unavailable—to pass.