Photo: Armando Franca/AP/TT, Bildbyrån
Few Swedes have donned Sporting Lisbon’s match shirt before Viktor Gyökeres moved there last year.
One of them is the former national team member Pontus Farnerud – who now pays tribute to the 26-year-old.
“During his relatively short time at Sporting, he has become a big profile in the Portuguese league,” writes Farnerud to Sportbibeln.
Summer 2023 moved Viktor Gyökeres26, from Coventry in the Championship to the Portuguese big club Sporting Lisbon. Since several bigger clubs in England showed interest in him, many were surprised by his choice of club – but with hindsight, the Swede did exactly the right thing.
Viktor Gyökere’s success in Lisbon
Since last summer, the striker has scored 66 goals and 19 assists in 68 games and was the main contributor to the club winning the league last season. You could even say that the coach Reuben Amorim was helped by Gyökeres to achieve a dream move to Manchester United, thanks in large part to the Swede’s many match-deciding goals.
One who has followed Gyökere’s progress in Portugal is the ex-pro Pontus Farnerud44, now sports director in Örgryte IS. The midfielder moved from Landskrona to Monaco as an 18-year-old and after eight years in France, he moved to Sporting Lisbon. He is one of the few Swedes who has represented the green and white capital club.
“I follow Sporting’s results and what happens in the club, of course a little extra given that Gyökeres is there,” he writes in an email to Sportbibeln.
READ MORE: The former BP coach tells what Viktor Gyökeres was like when he was young
“During his relatively short time at Sporting, Viktor Gyökeres has become a big profile in the Portuguese league and after his hat-trick against City also got his real international breakthrough, which as a Swede is fun and not least considering that I represented the club,” he continues.
Gyökeres can move to a bigger club
After dominating the league both last year and this year (Sporting are currently leading with eleven wins in eleven rounds), Gyökeres is now also showing its full capacity to the rest of the world. His three goals against Manchester City in the Champions League have resulted in him being rumored to every major club in Europe and his market value is said to be over a billion kroner.
Farnerud believes that Gyökeres quickly made a big difference when he signed for the club and that it is largely thanks to him that Sporting is doing great both domestically and abroad in Europe.
“Football is everything in Portugal and Sporting’s fans are fantastic, under Amorim with especially Gyökeres at the helm, the club has received an incredible lift with impressive games and results, it’s fun that two of my former teams are at the top of the Champions League table (Sporting is second and Monaco third in the table)”, he writes.
READ MORE: Alexander Isak’s powerful tribute to attacking colleague Viktor Gyökeres
Pontus Farnerud’s memories from Sporting
Pontus Farnerud belonged to Sporting between 2006 and 2008, before he moved to Norwegian Stabæk and then on to IFK Gothenburg. During his years at the club, they finished second in the league behind Porto. He remembers his time in the Portuguese capital with joy and warmth.
“A very nice club that has always had a clear identity of nurturing good players, during my time there Nani, (Joao) Moutinho and (Miguel) Veloso some of the players from the academy”, he writes and continues:
“We came second in the league after a strong Porto and won the cup both seasons I was there, which was great. We also played in the Champions League, so of course I remember the matches against, among others, Manchester United, Inter and Bayern”.
Have you been back to visit since you left 16 years ago?
“I have been to Lisbon but not to José Alvalade or the training facility located in Alcochete. I have some contact with some of the players I played with but at the moment no one is left at Sporting. I know that several in the organization are still in the association”.
Exciting to hear Pontus Farnerud’s words and thoughts about Viktor Gyökere’s time at Sporting Lisbon. Where do you think Gyökeres will go this summer? Please write a comment!
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