Arsenal have no intention of allowing striker Viktor Gyokeres to leave the club amid reported interest. The striker arrived at the Emirates Stadium on a £64million deal from Sporting CP last summer after a saga that lasted weeks, and he went on to scored 21 goals across all competitions, including 14 Premier League goals and five more in the Champions League.

That was a solid contribution from the striker, even if his scoring form was naturally better in Portugal, where the competition is typically of a lesser quality. But many feel there is more to come from Gyokeres, and others have shown concern that he is not the elite goalscorer Arsenal need in their front line.

Then again, that would be working under the assumption that Mikel Arteta wants an elite goalscorer. It’s nice to have one, but the Spaniard is much more concerned with how a striker plays within his system, and indeed how they enable the system to work.

Like Kai Havertz, Gyokeres fits the system well, and if he didn’t, Arsenal likely wouldn’t have won the Premier League title last season, given he was largely the starting striker.

There have been some whispers that Barcelona are interested in Gyokeres this summer, but while those rumours do not appear to be truthful in any case, Arsenal seem to have no intention of selling regardless.

Transfer guru Fabrizio Romano said on his YouTube show: “The feeling at Arsenal is that Viktor Gyokeres is going to stay, is that Mikel Arteta is happy. Mikel Arteta believes that Arsenal need a player like Viktor Gyokeres in the squad for his skills – last season he was scoring a lot of goals. And also, not just in terms of numbers, in terms of contributions, Arsenal are convinced that the second season in the Premier League is going to be different. So, Arsenal are very optimistic about Viktor Gyokeres.”

Gyokeres’ first Premier League season in stats

• Appearances: 36
• Goals: 14
• Assists: 1
• Aerial duals won: 0.8 per game
• Shots: 1.5 per game
• Pass success: 62.4%

Arteta has backed Gyokeres

Arteta has been very complimentary of Gyokeres, and he said back in May: “Some of the things you see, certain improvements from players probably the work has not been the day before or two days before, it has been done through months. It doesn’t happen overnight,” “Viktor has been working extremely hard, the level of demands he puts on himself are incredibly high. He always wants to learn, he’s always asking questions, he always wants to do extra things.

“He is always trying to find ways to find connections with his team-mates whether that is in the canteen, in the dressing room or on the pitch. At the end, when you have that kind of behaviour you get rewards.”

Rangers are now said to have agreed a deal to sign Aston Villa star Kosta Nedeljkovic. The Gers have had a difficult start to the season, but there was some reprieve in the Premier Sports Cup over the weekend, with Derek McInnes’s men thrashing St Mirren to land a quarter-final clash with Celtic.

Aside from the cup win, Rangers have failed to win either of their first two league games, while they have also crashed out of the Europa League. McInnes knows he needs to improve things and quickly, but the injuries suffered by Youssef Chermiti, who is going to be out for much of, if not all of, the season, while Tuur Rommens is going to be out for at least a few weeks having picked up a groin issue.

One position McInnes has wanted to strengthen is right-back, with Dujon Sterling and Ross McCrorie the current options, but it looks as though that has now been addressed.

According to The Athletic, Rangers have agreed a deal to sign Villa star Nedeljkovic, who is a highly-rated 20-year-old right-back. Reporter James Tanswell posted on X: “New: #AVFC full-back Kosta Nedeljkovic expected to join Rangers on an initial loan with a £4million obligation to buy. The clause dependent on appearances. Rangers manager Derek McInnes has held talks with 20yo, with Scottish club in contact throughout the summer.”

Nedeljkovic is the second right-back signing for Rangers this summer, with McCrorie having arrived from Bristol City on a price-friendly deal. The newest recruit is an 11-time Serbia international who spent last season with RB Leipzig, but he struggled with injury throughout the campaign. A knee and a back injury meant he only made five Bundesliga appearances.

Rangers signings this summer

• Ivor Pandur
• Vanja Dragojevic
• Olwethu Makhanya
• Daisuke Yokoto
• Ross McCrorie
• James Penrice (loan)
• Dan Neil
• Lawrence Shankland
• Cammy Devlin
• Ben Godfrey (loan)

McInnes wants to add to busy summer

Action Images via Reuters

Rangers have been very busy this summer, already completing 10 new signings, and this one will be the 11th. But amid a disappointing start, McInnes wants even more. He said going into the weekend’s game: “It’s not been the start we wanted, but the intention is still to have the outcome that we want come the end of the season. We’re still working hard towards that and we’ve got money to spend. We’ve got a lot of younger players and what we could do with is just a wee bit of help.

“We need to try and win games as we go along because if you don’t, everything becomes so much more difficult. Everything gets scrutinised. That’s not going to change. The only thing that has to change is getting more winning performances and hopefully we can have that Sunday.”

FIFA’s chief operating officer has been sacked, just weeks after he came out and criticised Gianni Infantino’s failed World Cup sell-off plan. Kevin Lamour’s departure, after holding a high-ranking role in football’s governing body, was confirmed in a statement on Monday night.

The focus on Infantino and FIFA’s handling of the World Cup has been under increased scrutiny since the tournament concluded last month, with Spain dethroning Argentina in a 1-0 win at MetLife Stadium. While controversy was already in the air over Donald Trump’s ability to phone his FIFA chief friend to help rescind USA’s Folarin Balogun’s red card, Infantino’s walls have been closing in even quicker over the last few weeks.

UEFA are among his biggest opponents after Infantino unveiled plans to get rich from World Cup stake sales, with Aleksander Ceferin leading discussions that have prompted major European nations, such as England, to withdraw their written support for him ahead of March’s important election.

And now, with opposition to his leadership continuing to grow, FIFA have sacked a rival within their organisation after a leaked letter to the rest of the governing body revealed their decision. In a statement, a FIFA spokesperson said, as per Sky News:

FIFA Sent Letter To Members After Kevin Lamour’s Exit

REUTERS/Jia Haocheng

Lamour’s exit fell on the same day that Infantino lost the support of the Scottish FA, though many other nations – including Argentina, Mexico, Morocco, and a handful of Arab countries – maintain their support for his leadership.

A letter sent to FIFA vice presidents and council members by Mattias Grafstrom, the FIFA secretary general, was also leaked, which revealed what the governing body had to say to other members about their decision to axe Lamour. The letter says: “Following recent discussions, FIFA and our Chief Operating Officer, Kevin Lamour have agreed to part ways.

It concluded: “I felt it was important that I personally provide you this update and I would like to express my gratitude to Kevin for these contributions and for his work and commitment on behalf of FIFA on a daily basis. I wish Kevin all the best for the future.”

Lamour’s Criticism of Gianni Infantino’s Leadership

REUTERS/Brian Snyder

Infantino faced a revolt after his plan to sell stakes in the World Cup to private equity investors. He withdrew the $20bn (15bn) proposal after a furious backlash by global football officials, including UEFA, which warned of a boycott of all FIFA games and events.

Lamour, 45, wrote back in July that staff were “deceived” by Infantino’s lack of openness in planning the sale over recent months and “deserve better than contempt and intimidation”. His statement came hours after Infantino’s senior adviser Carlos Cordeiro resigned and urged other senior FIFA staff to speak out.

The sacked chief operating officer said he had a duty to his colleagues in the statement. “And if that means I lose my job then so be it,” the French official said. “I will understand and respect that decision. At least I’ll sleep well tonight.”