Wolves have been credited with an interest in Coventry City star Viktor Gyokeres recently and the Sweden international’s potential arrival at Molineux could allow Julen Lopetegui to get rid of Diego Costa.
According to Swedish outlet Sportsbladet (via Coventry Live), Wolves have now joined the race to land the player, who has hit 12 goals in the Championship for the Sky Blues so far this season.
While Mark Robins will be desperate to keep him at the club amid their push for a playoff spot in the second tier, as he is undoubtedly crucial to the way they play, Gyokeres’ head could easily be turned by the promise of Premier League football.
Should he be tempted by a move to Molineux, it would surely spell the end for Costa in what has been a hugely disappointing spell with the Old Gold.
Former manager Bruno Lage clearly hit the panic button when opting to sign the former Chelsea man in the summer, with the injuries to Raul Jimenez and Sasa Kalajdzic perhaps forcing his hand as Wolves continued to struggle immensely in front of goal.
It was hoped that Costa could play the “villain” role for Wolves against opposition teams but he has been more of a villain to his own teammates and fans, with his only notable contribution so far being a headbutt on Brentford’s Ben Mee.
The 34-year-old has no goals or assists in nine Premier League appearances, with WhoScored awarding him a shocking 6.22 average rating for his performances in the top flight.
Gyokeres, meanwhile, has averaged a fantastic 7.00 rating thanks to his starring performances with the Ricoh Arena outfit, while he has also averaged far more shots (2.9 vs 2.2), key passes (1.2 vs 0.4) and dribbles (1.7 vs 0.2) than Costa, which emphasises how much of an upgrade he would be in Lopetegui’s side.
Robins was full of praise for his talismanic striker earlier in the season after he scored the equalising goal in a draw against Sunderland.
He said: “He’s not the finished article by any stretch of the imagination but he has some unbelievable ability – power, technique. He has got everything in his locker and that desire and hunger to score goals.”
Gyokeres sounds like exactly the sort of player Wolves need to get out of relegation trouble this season and while it would be harsh to get rid of Costa so soon after he’s joined the club, all the stats suggest that the Coventry star would be a far better option in attack.
