Troy Deeney caused outrage with his comments about Viktor Gyokeres joining Manchester United or Arsenal.
Gyokeres has been widely regarded among the best marksman in the world since a transfer from Coventry to Sporting Lisbon in 2023.
His first campaign in Portugal saw him net 43 goals in all competitions to help Sporting to the first league title in three years, and their second in the past two decades.
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The Sweden international continued his form into this campaign, chipping in with 25 goals in all competitions. Indeed, his 10 goals for his national team in 2024, has brought his annual total to 60.
That is 12 more than closest rival Erling Haaland, who has netted 48 goals for Manchester City and Norway.
Such form has seen Gyokeres linked to the likes of Arsenal and United.
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Nevertheless, former Watford skipper Deeney admitted he did not believe Gyokeres would win either of the two teams in the Premier League.
Deeney told TalkSport: "You know when you say something the clip is going to come back in six months. I genuinely think he's a good footballer, he works really hard, all of that.
"But I don't think he's a natural finisher. And again, everyone is going to pull up his goal record, I get that.
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"But I don't think he takes either of those two to winning the Premier League. That's just my opinion, and if he did, they'd have already bought him."
Deeney referenced Darwin Nunez, who scored 34 goals in his final year at Benfica before joining Liverpool two years ago. Since moving to the Premier League the Uruguay international has failed to score more than 11 goals in the league.
Discussing the quality in Portugal, Deeney added: "It's not the same league (as the English top-flight).
"And we'll find that out when Gyokeres comes over."
Chris Byfield