The “friendship pact” between Manchester United’s head coach Ruben Amorim and Viktor Gyokeres could enhance the club’s prospects of acquiring the Sporting CP striker this summer.

Gyokeres became part of Amorim’s Sporting squad in 2023. Despite having no prior experience in top-tier football at that point in his career, he has emerged as one of Europe’s most discussed forwards, boasting a remarkable record of 85 goals in 92 matches across various competitions.

This Swedish striker has been linked with several elite clubs throughout the season, with recent reports suggesting that Arsenal’s interest has intensified following Andrea Berta’s appointment as their new sporting director.

Rumours regarding a potential switch to Old Trafford have persisted, usually underpinned by Gyokeres’ prior relationship with Amorim.

Sky Sport in Switzerland claim that Arsenal have wasted little time following Berta’s arrival and are “already” in contact with the Gyokeres camp, with the most senior Gunners officials said to have given Berta the guarantees he needs regarding the financing of any deal.

But the same report cites “several sources” to state that Gyokeres had earlier “given his word” to Amorim about following the coach to Manchester this summer. Equally, that “friendship pact” alone, while certainly a helpful addition in the club’s efforts to recruit, may not be enough to dictate the transfer saga when an uncompetitive United will almost certainly have to win the Europa League to have any chance of offering European football next season.

United know from recent experience that the Amorim factor isn’t strong enough by itself to attract his former Sporting players. Winger Geovany Quenda, heavily tipped to arrive at Old Trafford and help revolutionise the coach’s 3-4-2-1 system, has already signed with Chelsea instead.

As well as Gyokeres in the hunt for a new striker, United are also heavily linked with Hugo Ekitike and Liam Delap, both younger and potentially cheaper talents with the potential to spend a decade or more at Old Trafford. Ekitike has recently admitted growing up a United fan, but Ipswich Town are determined not to be bullied by bigger clubs over Delap, despite impending relegation.