Arsenal due to sign their new Ian Wright “within 24 hours”

In just under a day, Arsenal will finally be back on our screens.

Mikel Arteta’s side may have already played one friendly behind closed doors, reportedly beating Watford 2-0, but they’ll kick off their pre-season proper with a game against AC Milan in Singapore tomorrow afternoon.

It’ll be the first chance fans get to see some of the club’s stars back in action, and how some of the new signings are looking ahead of a season in which they surely have to win the Premier League.

However, we have a feeling that the match might be somewhat overshadowed by reports of a new addition preparing for his medical, an addition who could well be Arsenal’s new Ian Wright.

Arsenal closing in on their new Ian Wright

Usually, a club known for moving slowly in the market and often not doing enough business, this summer has been a real breath of fresh air for Arsenal fans.

With still over a month to go until the window slams shut, the club has already announced the signings of Martin Zubimendi, Christian Norgaard, Kepa Arrizabalaga, and Noni Madueke.

Add to that the reports that Cristhian Mosquera has now flown out to join the squad and the persistent links to Eberechi Eze, and this summer has the potential to be unprecedented for the North Londoners.

However, we’ve saved potentially the best news for last, as it looks like Andrea Berta and Co have finally secured the player fans have been clamouring for – someone who could be a modern-day Wright.

At least that is according to journalist Ben Jacobs, who has confirmed that Arsenal have now reached “an agreement with Sporting for Viktor Gyökeres.”

Jacobs has revealed that the Gunners will pay a fixed fee of €63.5m, which is approximately £55m, and then add-ons of about €10m, which is approximately £9m.

Moreover, the Swedish international is now expected to undergo his medical “within 24 hours”, and he’s ready to board a flight to join up with the squad at their pre-season training camp in Singapore. That final slice of information comes courtesy of journalist Miguel Delaney.

It’s a significant amount of money to spend on one player, but Gyökeres’ record is undeniable, and he has the potential to become a new Wright.

Why Gyökeres could be Arsenal’s new Wright

Okay, so we know this is really quite the statement to make, as while he retired long ago, Wright is a bona fide legend of Arsenal Football Club and someone who was one of the very best strikers in his day.

However, even though that is a lot of pressure to place on his shoulders so soon, there are some undeniable similarities between him and Gyökeres, and we do think the Swede could have a similar impact.

The first is that both players joined, or will be joining, the Gunners relatively late in their careers, which is unusual.

When he completed his move to Highbury in 1991, from Crystal Palace, the Englishman was 28 years old, and when the Sporting CP star finally puts pen to paper this week, he’ll be 27.

Moreover, we think the Stockholm-born “monster,” as dubbed by analyst Ben Mattinson, could follow in the 61-year-old’s footsteps because he’s more than proven himself to be an absurdly prolific goalscorer over the last two years.

For example, since moving to Lisbon in the summer of 2023, the former Coventry City star has scored 97 goals and provided 28 assists in 102 appearances, totalling 8417 minutes.

In other words, the outrageously dangerous forward has averaged 1.22 goal involvements per game for the last two seasons, or one every 67.33 minutes.

Now, while there is a chance that his exploits in front of goal don’t quite translate in English football, even if he can manage 50% of what he did in Portugal, we see no reason why he couldn’t end up matching Wright’s incredible record of 185 goals and 31 assists in 288 appearances.

Finally, both players are right-footed, so there is a very good chance we will see the Sporting ace replicating some of the goals the forward scored back in his day.

Ultimately, while it’s a bold prediction, we see no reason why Gyökeres couldn’t follow in Wright’s footsteps at Arsenal and become the prolific striker they’ve needed for years.

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