^ ^ ‘Plays like a child’ – Teddy Sheringham claims Arsenal star ‘doesn’t understand’ his position

Former Tottenham striker Teddy Sheringham (Picture: Getty)

Teddy Sheringham has criticised Arsenal’s Viktor Gyokeres, suggesting the striker ‘plays like a child’ and does not understand his role as a centre forward.

Gyokeres arrived at the Emirates last summer, joining Mikel Arteta’s side from Sporting CP after scoring 97 goals in 102 appearances for the Portuguese side.

The Swedish striker amassed a respectable 22 goals in all competitions over the course of his debut season in English football but failed to fully win over large swathes of the fanbase.

And Kai Havertz’s return to form and fitness has seen him firmly usurp Gyokeres as Arteta’s go-to centre forward at the start of the current campaign.

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Gyokeres is yet to start a Premier League match this season, but Sheringham believes there is good reason for this as he claimed the 28-year-old still has plenty of areas in his game that need improvement.

‘It shocks me that he’s still playing like a kid,’ Sheringham told Hajper.

‘I don’t think he has understood what it means to be an attacking player and what he has to do.

Viktor Gyokeres has struggled for minutes so far this season (Picture: Shutterstock)

‘There are different ways to play striker, but he needs to be told to hold onto the ball when it comes to him.

‘He does some things well, but constantly gives the ball away and when you are 28 years old, you should have learned this a long time ago.’

In the wake of such criticism, Gyokeres has delivered a timely reminder of his capabilities over the international break, scoring four goals in four games for Graham Potter’s Sweden.

Gyokeres joined Mikel Arteta’s side last summer from Sporting CP (Picture: Getty)

Asked about what the Arsenal striker brings to his side, Potter recently said: ‘The way he leads, how he gets all the players involved, how he gives us a completely different dimension to our game.

‘That he’s scoring again, he’s in fantastic form.’

Gyokeres will hope his goalscoring form for Sweden could see him back in the starting lineup when Arsenal host Leeds United on Saturday.

But regardless, the striker has admitted that he is keen to play more regular minutes after his slow start to the club season.

‘I haven’t played a lot, but I’ve had a few games,’ he said.

It’s felt okay then, but it’s clear that I want to play football and as much as possible. Hopefully that will come, too.  You always want to be on the field as a football player.

‘Of course you expect more playing time, but we have an extremely good squad with a lot of good players and have been doing well here at the start.

‘I’m just trying to focus on what I can control and do my best to play more.’

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^ ^ Zinedine Zidane hails ‘great’ Manchester United youngster despite Red Devils struggles

Zinedine Zidane has got off to a solid start as France boss (Picture: Shutterstock)

Zinedine Zidane handed Leny Yoro his France debut on Monday night against Belgium and hailed a ‘great’ performance from the Manchester United youngster.

The 20-year-old played the full 90 minutes of the 4-1 win for the home side at the Stade de France, which completed a strong start to their Nations League campaign.

Zidane has replaced Didier Deschamps as France boss after his epic stint in charge and his first four matches have produced two wins over Belgium, a victory over Türkiye and draw with Italy.

Yoro will be hoping for more chances to shine under the new manager after impressing on his senior international debut.

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The Manchester United centre-back was at the heat of the French defence alongside Chelsea’s Maxence Lacroix and earned praise from his iconic boss.

Asked about Yoro’s performance, Zidane said, via L’Equipe: ‘There’s a lot of competition for that position, and when we lost Ibrahima Konaté , we immediately wanted to take Leny.

‘I’m happy for him because he had a great game. He fulfilled his role well. I’m happy for all these young players in the French national team.’

Leny Yoro came up against former Manchester United striker Romelu Lukaku on his France debut (Picture: Getty Images)

Real Madrid’s Konate picked up a knee injury earlier in the international break, which saw Yoro step up to the senior squad from the Under-21s.

When the call came, he said: ‘Of course, this is the dream for me. The big dream for me and for every French player, I think. If you can reach it, this is something you can’t explain, honestly.

‘This is the dream of every child in France. So, if you can do it, that’s pretty crazy.’

There is indeed a lot of competition at centre-back for France, with Liverpool’s Jeremy Jacquet also earning a senior debut during the current international break.

Dayot Upamecano was with the squad but left after being shown a red card against Italy, while William Saliba will be back in contention when he returns from injury.

Yoro lined up alongside Chelsea’s Maxence Lacroix (Picture: Shutterstock)

Yoro has now started more international matches than Premier League games this season, with just two substitute appearances in the top flight so far this campaign.

The defender has started in the Champions League against Sabah and in the Carabao Cup defeat to Brighton, but remains down the pecking order under Michael Carrick in the Premier League.

Harry Maguire and Lisandro Martinez have largely been first choice in the middle of defence, while Ayden Heaven also got a start on the opening weekend of the season at Hull City.

Italian publication TuttoSport reported over the summer that AC Milan were looking at taking advantage of the situation and bringing Yoro to the San Siro.

The Frenchman remained at Old Trafford but will want more first team opportunities after his 2024 move from Lille – worth £52.18m, with £6.73m in add-ons – promised much but has delievered little.

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^ ^ Arsenal’s Riccardo Calafiori credits Italy legend after ’emotional’ first international goal

It was an emotional evening for Riccardo Calafiori in Bologna (Picture: Shutterstock)

Riccardo Calafiori scored his first goal for Italy in a 3-1 win over Turkey on Monday and has given a ‘special mention’ to an iconic defender for his contribution.

The 24-year-old came off the bench in Bologna and produced a brilliant header from a free-kick to score Italy’s second of the game and put them ahead for the second time.

Former West Ham striker Gianluca Scamacca had put the home side ahead before Aral Simsir equalised for the visitors.

Calafiori scored on a ground he used to call home, before 21-year-old Pio Esposito scored his seventh goal for his country to secure the win.

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It was a memorable night for the Arsenal star, who joined the Gunners from Bologna and made his Italy debut at the Stadio Renato Dall’Ara, where he has now scored his first international goal.

The versatile defender says 121-cap Italy legend Leonardo Bonucci, now on Roberto Mancini’s coaching staff, is to credit for the towering header thanks to a key piece of advice.

‘This afternoon, I had told Scamacca when we were sunbathing that he would score, and it went well, for both of us!’ Calafiori told Sky Sport Italia.

Calafiori and Brentford’s Michael Kayode (second right) both came off the bench in Bologna (Picture: Shutterstock)

‘It was all written in the stars, as I made my debut here, scored my first goal, I owe a lot to this city and these fans. I wanted to repay them, it was emotional. I hadn’t felt a game like this in my stomach for a long time, it really hit me, I was very emotional.’

He added: ‘We are trying to improve, as we can do better in every aspect. Actually, I have to confess that Bonucci told me initially to stay back, but at the last second he went, “actually you go and [Michael] Kayode stay behind.”

‘It was a smart intuition and so Bonucci deserves a special mention, especially as he’s quite egocentric and wants me to say that.’

Calafiori said that last line with a laugh as Mancini’s side complete a mixed international break, which saw them beat Turkey home and away, draw with France and lose to Belgium.

Leonardo Bonucci played for Italy from 2010-23 (Picture: Getty Images)

The defender feels Italy have improved already since that loss to Belgium at the start of this international break, but says there is more to come when Mancini’s team face them and France again in November.

‘Things have changed in just a few days, we had said in the first interview we couldn’t see the work develop in three days, but honestly not after two weeks either,’ he said.

‘There is still a lot to be done, we’ve improved, but can do much better, and then we’ll have our say in the last two matches.’

Mancini made nine changes for this match from the side that drew with France on Friday after a very busy international break.

‘Despite the changes, naturally there was also fatigue,’ he said. ‘We suffered at the start, but the lads did well to get it back on track, score again after the 1-1, so it was a good game as the fourth in such a short spell of time.

‘The only certainty was that we would lose some of that fluidity, it was fully expected and predicted. We also had two players on yellow cards and the referee seemed inclined to book them again, so I took them off.’

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^ ^ Alex Scott injury update as Chelsea and Arsenal target leaves England squad

Alex Scott made his full England debut in the 7-0 win over Croatia (Photo: Getty)

Alex Scott has withdrawn from the England squad ahead of the Three Lions’ Nations League clash against Czech Republic on Tuesday.

The Bournemouth midfielder – a top transfer target for Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool – has suffered a quad injury and may be sidelined for several months.

Scott came off the bench to make his England debut in the win over Czech Republic in Prague last week before starting the 7-0 demolition of Croatia on Saturday.

His performance earned rave reviews, not least from manager Thomas Tuchel, upping his valuation amid strong interest from the Premier League’s biggest clubs.

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However, as reported by The Athletic, the 23-year-old has now returned to the south coast following the injury and it is said there are fears he could be stuck in the treatment room for two months.

If so, it is a major blow for Bournemouth who are 17th in the table and yet to win in the league this season, and have their debut Europa League campaign to navigate.

Scott started all five opening league games of the season, providing one goal and one assist.

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Manager Marco Rose will no doubt give a clearer update on his star player’s condition before the Cherries’ big match against Chelsea this Saturday.

Other notable games that Scott might miss include a trip to Manchester United on October 25, the Carabao Cup fourth-round clash against Aston Villa and their European tie against AC Milan.

More to follow…

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