Journalist drops Viktor Gyokeres update which could see Coventry City miss out on millions..
Coventry City fans probably thought they’d heard the last of Viktor Gyokeres when he departed for Sporting Lisbon last season, but his stock has risen that much that the Sky Blues are now watching on with bated breath to see what his next move will be.
According to Portuguese news outlet O Jogo, Coventry could have a sell-on clause worth up to 15% on Gyokeres, so it’s easy to see why his next move could be so crucial for the direction of the club.
Having not played in the Premier League since 2000/2001, Coventry haven’t been blessed with the riches of the top-flight some of the other sides they’re competing against have had, so to sell a player for a reported €20m is a big deal.
The money received from the Swede’s departure helped bolster the squad a little, but a further financial boost could feasibly be the difference between mid-table obscurity and a promotion challenge for a Coventry side who have come up short in each of the last two seasons.
With that in mind, they won’t be pleased to see the latest Gyokeres developments, with Florian Plettenburg reporting that Gyokeres may be sold for less than the €100m release clause in his contract.
Sporting selling cheap could cost Coventry millions
Viktor Gyokeres
News that Sporting are happy to sell Gyokeres for €60-€70m certainly won’t go down well with Coventry fans, as they know that difference of potentially up to €40m could see them miss out on a windfall of up to €6m should their 15% sell-on clause still be valid.
That’s money Mark Robins would love to reinvest into the team, but if he’s to get a chance to do that, it will likely be in the summer as a move is currently not planned for January.
That will of course do little to help Coventry’s promotion hopes, where after a slow start to the season, they’re once again playing catch up as they’re seven points adrift of the top six.
Sky Blues fans will hope they can catch up enough to finally end their 20+ year wait to see their side play in the Premier League, and if they’re to be among England’s elite next season, then they’ll more than likely be lining up against Gyokeres, given Manchester City, Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea are heading up the race for his signature.
Gyokeres has shot to international stardom at Sporting
Viktor Gyokeres
While Gyokeres was certainly a household name among Championship fans, he was something of a lesser-known quantity in Europe given he’d never really shone on the top-flight stage.
It was evident from his time at Coventry that he was ready to make that step up, and Sporting will be thanking their lucky stars that it was them who took the gamble on him, given they now look set to land a huge profit.
Storming clear at the top of the Liga Portugal standings, with his 12 goals almost twice as many as his nearest challenger, Gyokeres has assumed the position he took up last season, when he topped the scoring charts with an incredible 29 goals in 33 games.
Barring a spectacular collapse, this season will be the fourth league campaign in a row in which Gyokeres has scored at least 15 goals, so his goalscoring pedigree is almost unmatched in Europe.
Coventry will hope they get the true value of that with a release clause sale, but they now face the harsh reality of missing out on a hefty widfall given the fact Sporting are willing to settle for less money.
