Troy Deeney has laid into Mikel Arteta for praising Viktor Gyokeres’ performance in Arsenal’s 1-1 draw with Manchester City.
Gabriel Martinelli rescued a point for the Gunners with a stoppage time equaliser at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday.
Mikel Arteta became the first manager to go five league matches in a row unbeaten against Pep GuardiolaThe Brazilian’s strike in the third minute of injury time cancelled out Erling Haaland‘s ninth-minute opener.
But for a long time it looked as though the Norwegian’s breakaway goal would be enough to claim all three points for the Citizens, with Mikel Arteta‘s side failing to create many clear-cut chances.
What did Arteta say about Viktor Gyokeres?
One player who struggled in the clash was striker Gyokeres, who was largely anonymous, and did not have a single shot in 90 minutes.
Since his £63.7million arrival in the summer, the Swede has made a steady start to life at the Emirates, with three goals in six games.
So far, Gyokeres has scored in wins over Leeds and Nottingham Forest, but has been underwhelming in big games against Liverpool, Man City and Manchester United.
He has failed to find the net in any of those encounters, but Arteta leapt to his centre-forward’s defence after the Man City draw, insisting his performance was up to scratch.
Assessing Gyokeres’ performance, the Spaniard told talkSPORT: “He did a lot of good things.
“I think he was very unfortunate in two situations where he was just in front of goal and the ball doesn’t hit him for millimetres.
“But I think he had a very strong performance today.”
How did Troy Deeney react?
But Arteta’s post-match comments didn’t go down well with everyone, including talkSPORT host and former Watford striker Deeney, who was less than impressed.
Gabriel Martinelli saved Arsenal from a second league defeat of the season against Man CityGetty But his teammate Gyokeres struggled to get involved in the matchGettyReacting to the City draw on talkSPORT’s ‘The Final Word’, Deeney claimed there was no way of dressing up Gyokeres’ display.
He said: “I understand the manager has to give the striker confidence, but he just described Gyokeres as having a strong performance today.”
Deeney went on: “We watched the game, we’ve seen it.
“As an ex-striker, I’m always going to look towards what the strikers do – How could you say he had a strong performance?”
Gyokeres cut an isolated figure against City, touching the ball just 24 times while only completing 13 passes.
However, this wasn’t Deeney’s main concern, who instead was unconvinced by the 27-year-old’s ability to score in decisive moments.
Despite finding the net three times in the Premier League, many are still unconvinced over GyokeresThe 140-goal Watford great explained: “I think he will score goals. I’ve never said he won’t score goals.
“My concern is in those big games where you’ve brought him in to get you over the line, to get that goal.
“We’ve seen it with Haaland as well. How many times have we seen Haaland have 10-12 touches in a game, where people go: ‘He’s terrible, he doesn’t do anything’.
“But he scores in those big moments and I can put my house on it. When he went through today, we all went: ‘Goal’.
“I just don’t get that feeling with Gyokeres.”
Deeney added: “I do against Leeds, against Wolves, against West Ham – when you play against those teams, no bother.
Troy Deeney isn’t sold on Gyokeres just yet“But when you see his big moments, I just don’t feel it.
“And that’s why I got a little bit annoyed with Arteta – what is the consideration for a strong performance?”
‘He reminds me of Gareth Southgate’
It wasn’t just Arteta’s praise of Gyokeres which Deeney picked up on, as he also compared his managerial approach to that of former England boss Gareth Southgate.
Following Arsenal’s 1-0 defeat to Liverpool in August, their manager came in for heavy criticism for fielding a defensively-minded team.
And Arteta did the same against City, picking a midfield three of Declan Rice, Martin Zubimendi and Mikel Merino, without a more attacking number 10.
This was in spite of the Gunners investing heavily in attacking firepower over the summer, with summer signing Eberechi Eze only being introduced to the match at half-time.
GettyGareth Southgate led England to the final at back-to-back European Championship campaigns[/caption]While the Gunners dominated possession, they didn’t create a great deal of chances, until Eze found Martinelli with a fine pass for the equaliser.
And Deeney was quick to draw parallels between Arteta’s tactical set-up and Southgate’s, who also came in for criticism for prioritising defensive stability over all-out attack.
He said: “Arsenal fans you’re not going to like this – he just reminds me of Gareth Southgate.
“He’s going to go to his tried and tested. He’s going to be pragmatic. He’s going to do the basics right.
“But he’s got an unbelievable squad there. And he’s always just going to be scared, unless he’s forced to, to pull the trigger and go: ‘Right then – you creative guys, go and win us the game!’ “
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