When you think of the best strikers in the world right now, players like Erling Haaland, Harry Kane, and Kylian Mbappe pop into your mind without hesitation. But what if we were to tell you, that all these names are nowhere close to being on the level of the Swedish Striker who is lighting up Liga Portugal for his club side Sporting Lisbon? Yes! You heard that right. Viktor Gyökeres has been by far the best striker of 2024.
And the statistics back him as well. The Sporting CP Striker has banged in 40 goals in 2024 along with 14 assists! Yes, granted that he plays out of the top 5 leagues in Europe, but the Portuguese League still offers very tough competition and historic clubs like Benfica, Porto, and Sporting Lisbon, fighting for the league title.
It also has only 18 teams, meaning only 34 matchdays, unlike Erling Haaland who plays 38 matches in a regular Premier League season. On top of this, Sporting Lisbon isn’t exactly the kind of powerhouse Harry Kane’s Bayern Munich and Erling Haaland’s Manchester City are, meaning no match is a guaranteed stat-padding session for Viktor Gyökeres. Yet, he manages to find the back of the net multiple times in a game.
Viktor Gyökeres is the ideal target man and poacher. Like Erling Haaland, he finds the right moment to pounce on the ball and is a master at finishing and bullying defenders into submission. Last season, 28 of his 29 goals came from inside the box in Liga Portugal. Not only this, but The Swede’s hold-up play is phenomenal as well. It helps Sporting Lisbon start counterattacks and keep the ball’s possession in dangerous areas.
But Unlike Haaland, Gyökeres is also quite adept at setting up his teammates to score as can be seen in his assist tally of 10 in the League itself. This is what separates him from Haaland. Harry Kane, who is also a very versatile striker playing in an attack-minded league managed only 8 assists last season. While Viktor Gyökeres isn’t as fast as Kylian Mbappe, he makes up for it with his aerial presence and his bull-like physique.
The man with 43 goals and 15 assists last season actually missed out on the Ballon d’Or nominations this year! What a Shame! Not just him, there were other deserving candidates who missed out as well.
Furthermore, It was a real surprise when no one went for the Swedish Monster during the summer transfer window. But be rest assured at the pace the man is going, it won’t be long before a top European Club comes swooping in for him. My bet would be FC Barcelona and Arsenal, one club will be looking be looking to replace the 37-year-old Robert Lewandowski while the other doesn’t have a dominating presence up top.
So who do you think should go for Viktor Gyökeres, the best striker in the World? Let us know in the comments below.
