Piers Morgan claims Arsenal star feels ‘disrespected’ by Mikel Arteta after being used to force transfer
Piers Morgan has called out Mikel Arteta's treatment of one Arsenal star, claiming the player feels 'disrespected' by recent actions.
Arsenal have got their Premier League title defence off to a perfect start with three wins from three, including over London rivals Chelsea.
However, not all of Arsenal's players have enjoyed the start of the season, as Arsenal fan and journalist Morgan has claimed that he has it on good authority that Viktor Gyokeres is not happy with how he's been treated.
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Viktor Gyokeres feels 'disrespected' by Mikel Arteta over transfer saga
Gyokeres joined Arsenal to much fanfare last summer in a £64million deal from Portuguese side Sporting.
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In his first season in the Premier League, the Swedish striker scored an impressive 14 goals but has found himself out of favour across Arsenal's start to the 2026/27 season.
The 28-year-old made his first appearance of the season as a late substitute in the win over Chelsea, having not featured at all in either of his club's two Premier League opening fixture.
And, according to Morgan, this was a deliberate decision by Arteta as a ploy to try and force a swap deal to sign top transfer target Julian Alvarez from Atletico Madrid, and Gyokeres isn't happy about it.
“Viktor Gyokeres has hardly had a kick since the season started and I was told on good authority that he was being deliberately benched,” Morgan said on Sports Uncensored.
“Arsenal were going to try and trade him for Julian Alvarez and in the end they couldn’t make that deal happen.
“I was told that Gyokeres is p****d off about the way he’s been treated and feels he’s been disrespected."
Throughout the summer, Arsenal were strongly linked with former Man City striker Alvarez, who himself appeared to be attempting to force a move to Barcelona.
Ultimately, Alvarez remained at Atletico Madrid, with Arsenal forced to make do with Kai Havertz, who has started all three Premier League fixtures so far, as their first choice striker.
And, despite the brutal nature of the transfer tactics used to try make the Alvarez move work, Morgan suggested that he and other Arsenal fans were supportive of their manager taking matters into his own hands.
Morgan added: “I think that’s undeniable but that it also shows the ruthless streak of Mikel Arteta which many Arsenal fans are quite happy to see.
Arsenal preparing move for new striker when transfer window reopens
So far this season, Havertz appears to have gotten off to a decent start, with two goals across the three Premier League fixtures.
But, that doesn't mean that the Arsenal won't consider making another move for a striker in the near future, and according to Morgan, work is already underway ahead of the transfer window reopening in January.
“I’m told Arsenal are bracing to go back into the market for a new striker in January," he claimed.
"They’re going to go back in during the January window and get someone.”
There's no doubt that links with Alvarez will resurface in the new year, but it remains to be seen if the Argentina striker will remain the top target or if someone else will emerge as the season progresses.
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Topics: Arsenal, Mikel Arteta, Viktor Gyokeres, Premier League, Football
Ben McCrum