Gyokeres wants to join Ibrahimovic and Isak in Wembley history books
Viktor Gyokeres has set his sights on joining an exclusive group of Swedish strikers who have made their mark in the League Cup final.
Gyokeres: I Want My Name Alongside Swedish Legends After Cup Final
The Arsenal forward takes on Manchester City at Wembley on Sunday, and he knows his countrymen have a strong track record in this fixture.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored twice for Manchester United in their 2017 victory over Southampton, while Alexander Isak netted the decisive goal for Newcastle United against Liverpool last year.
When someone mentioned this to Gyokeres, he smiled. “Yeah, they like to do it there, no? That would be good,” he said about adding his name to that list.
The 25-year-old arrives at the final in red-hot form. He already delivered a goal and an assist in the semi-final against Chelsea, helping secure Arsenal’s place at Wembley.
But Wembley hasn’t always been kind to him. His only previous appearance at the stadium came in the 2023 Championship play-off final, when his Coventry City side faced Luton Town.
Gyokeres set up the equaliser in a 1-1 draw and created another fine chance that should have won the game. He then scored in the penalty shootout, but Coventry still lost.
That match turned out to be his last for the club before joining Sporting CP that summer.
Since moving to Portugal, Gyokeres has played in three cup finals. He scored a crucial stoppage-time penalty in the Taca de Portugal final against Benfica last season, helping Sporting win 3-1 after extra time.
He also converted a spot-kick in the Allianz Cup final against Benfica this year, though Sporting lost on penalties after a 1-1 draw.
His only final without a goal came in another Taca de Portugal clash with Porto, where Sporting played most of the match with 10 men.
The numbers tell an interesting story. Across four cup or play-off finals, Gyokeres has two goals and one assist in normal time, plus two more in shootouts. Yet he has only finished on the winning side once.
Sunday offers him the chance to change that. An open-play goal still eludes him in these big moments, and he will want to correct that against Manchester City.
With his country’s rich history in this competition, Gyokeres has every motivation to write his own chapter at Wembley.