Most of the time the Portuguese media now talks about Viktor Gyokeres’ future, they give Chelsea a mention. And it’s no different today, as newspaper Record discusses his potential stay at Sporting.
The outlet features a story about the ‘operation’ the Lions are set to make, as they’re hoping they can keep the striker beyond the end of the season.
Their story starts by recalling that Chelsea wanted to offer €80m plus €5m in bonuses for the signing, and Sporting managed to resist the sale for now.
Now their intention is to have him for another year, and his agents are set to go to Lisbon and listen to what the club have to say.
Since Gyokeres’ release clause is worth €100m and that’s considered affordable by some clubs, Sporting are set to try to raise that to at least €120m.
One of their big arguments in the talks is that he should play the Champions League with the Lions next season.
That’s something Chelsea are very unlikely to offer, and that could have an impact on his decision.
However, following Record’s story, Sporting manager Ruben Amorim was today asked about Gyokeres’ potential renewal, and denied that possibility.
“He has a five-year contract, there’s no meeting to renew it. We’re not talking to Viktor’s agents,” he said (via Bola Na Rede).
Whether that’s to provide some smoke to hide the meeting, however, remains to be seen.
