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Viktor Gyokeres’ agent says ‘it will be more difficult’ for the star forward to remain at Sporting should Ruben Amorim leave the club to take charge of Liverpool in the summer.
Sporting head coach Amorim has emerged as Liverpool’s primary target to take over the reins from Jurgen Klopp at the end of the 2023/24 season, after Xabi Alonso confirmed that he intends to stay put at Bayer Leverkusen.
Reports emanating from Germany this week indicate that Amorim has verbally agreed to manage Liverpool after holding positive discussions over a proposed three-year deal on Merseyside.
However, the Reds know they may need to pay Amorim’s £12.8million release clause to prise the manager away from Lisbon given the 39-year-old is tied into a contract until 2026.
Gyokeres has been instrumental in Sporting’s success under Amorim this season, with the 25-year-old racking up 22 goals and ten assists to help the green and whites open up a four-point lead at the top of the Primeira Liga with seven games remaining of their campaign.
The attacker’s extraordinary debut season has, though, caught the attention of some of Europe’s elite clubs and Arsenal and Chelsea are both readying bids to test Sporting’s resolve for their prized possession.
Incessant speculation over Amorim’s future has only cast further doubt over Gyokeres’ situation and it appears both player and manager could be set for the exit door in the summer.
‘It doesn’t surprise me that Ruben is being linked to Liverpool, it’s normal, his work is of a high level, it’s what the clubs are looking for,’ Gyokeres’ representative Hasan Cetinkaya told A Bola.
‘Yes, it will be more difficult for Viktor to stay if Ruben Amorim leaves Sporting because Viktor came precisely because of Ruben.
‘The day we met, I said to Ruben: “Here’s my boy, he came to Sporting because of you”.’
According to Cetinkaya, eight teams battled it out for Gyokeres before the Sweden international decided to leave Coventry City to work under Amorim Sporting last summer.
‘There were eight clubs very interested in Viktor last summer,’ he added.
‘They all paid Coventry more than Sporting, they all paid Viktor more, they all paid a higher commission to the agent.
‘And I brought him to Sporting because of Ruben Amorim, because I know his work and his work with the players. I chose Ruben because he is a coach at another level.’
Amorim had remained tight-lipped over his future until earlier this week when, for the first time, he refused to rule out the possibility that he could be set to leave Sporting.
Asked where he could confirm that he will still be Sporting’s manager next season, the Portuguese told reporters: ‘No, I can’t guarantee that.
‘Sporting are already dealing with the future, I can’t decide.
‘I gave my word and I can’t go back on it. If we don’t win titles, I’ll leave Sporting. It was clear from the start and it was the message I passed on to the players. We have to win titles.’
Amorim added: ‘First we will see if we can do it and then we’ll decide things. It’s not a worry, the future has been planned for a long time.
‘We are outlining all the situations for next season.
‘So I can’t guarantee that I’ll stay, we have to win titles. And we’re on the right track.’
Asked if he could leave should a club trigger his release clause, Amorim replied: ‘I don’t want to dwell on my future, the focus is on this game.
‘I’m not going to discuss anything with Sporting.
‘I owe Sporting a lot, I’m very happy here. I’ll never put pressure on myself to leave.’
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