- Gyokeres played a starring role as Sporting beat Man City 4-1 on Tuesday night
- The Swedish forward has now scored 23 goals in 17 matches this season
- LISTEN NOW: It’s All Kicking Off!, available wherever you get your podcasts. New episodes every Monday and Thursday
Rio Ferdinand has tipped Viktor Gyokeres to potentially follow Ruben Amorim to Manchester United after the star’s hat-trick against Man City in the Champions League.
Gyokeres continued his stunning form under Amorim as the Sporting Lisbon head coach oversaw a 4-1 win over Man City in his final home match before taking charge of Man United.
Phil Foden had given Man City the lead in the fourth minute, before Gyokeres missed a golden chance went sent clean through on goal, tamely chipping straight at Ederson.
The Swedish star made no mistake with his second chance, firing in a 38th-minute leveller for the Portuguese champions.
Gyokeres then struck twice from the penalty spot to complete his hat-trick, after Maximiliano Araujo had put Sporting ahead in the first minute of the second half.
Rio Ferdinand has suggested Ruben Amorim could try to bring Viktor Gyokeres to Man United
Gyokeres scored a hat-trick to help Sporting beat Man City 4-1 on Amorim’s home farewell
Ex-Man United star Ferdinand questioned whether Gyokeres could be a top target for Amorim
Former Man United defender Ferdinand, speaking on TNT Sports, claimed Premier League clubs would be wondering why they had failed to snap up the former Coventry City forward, who has emerged as one of the best goalscorers in Europe.
‘The recruitment teams in all the clubs in the Premier League must be scratching their heads about how they let him get away,’ Ferdinand said.
‘He hasn’t had a conventional route, his route to the top hasn’t been straightforward.
‘He was at Brighton as a kid, sold to Coventry, went on loan to Swansea, goes back to Coventry and does well, then goes to Sporting Lisbon.
‘He has had a journey where he has had to build himself and create what he is now.
‘You think “How has he been allowed to get out?”, all of a sudden when are seeing what he has got, maybe he has grown into what he is, the confidence, stature he has, the physicality, he might have had to wait for that to come.
‘A few times today he blew away from players, holding people off.’
The hat-trick took Gyokeres’ tally for the season to 23 goals in 17 matches this season, with his overall tally at Sporting now standing at 63 in 66 games.
Gyokeres had levelled for Sporting in the first half to cancel out Phil Foden’s opener
The Sporting star then struck twice from the penalty spot to complete a stunning victory
Ferdinand questioned whether Amorim could look to sign the forward as he bids to start a Manchester United revival.
‘It is going to be interesting, as managers when they leave clubs always have one or two players who they think “got to take that, that guy knows how I play, everyone can feed off him”.
‘Who is that going to be if he takes someone from Sporting Lisbon? After how he has been playing with 11 in five games, is he going to be the No 1 target?’
Gyokeres, who is now the joint top scorer in the Champions League with five goals, has been tipped a move to the Premier League next summer.
Reports last month claimed Sporting could accept a fee of between £50-58million next summer, despite the star having an £85million release clause in his contract.