{"id":350992,"date":"2025-12-17T11:42:08","date_gmt":"2025-12-17T11:42:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/350992\/"},"modified":"2025-12-17T11:42:08","modified_gmt":"2025-12-17T11:42:08","slug":"arsenal-legend-reassures-supporters-not-to-worry-about-misfiring-big-money-striker","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/350992\/","title":{"rendered":"Arsenal legend reassures supporters not to worry about misfiring big-money striker."},"content":{"rendered":"

Ray Parlour has moved to defend much-discussed striker Viktor Gy\u00f6keres<\/a>, insisting Arsenal supporters must show patience as the forward adapts to the demands of playing for a title-chasing Premier League club, while also addressing the club\u2019s growing injury concerns and the likelihood of January transfer business.<\/p>\n

Despite scrutiny over Gy\u00f6keres\u2019 output, Parlour does not believe there should be concerns about the Swede failing to fit into Mikel Arteta\u2019s side, pointing instead to the depth of attacking options now available.<\/p>\n

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\u201cNot really,\u201d Parlour told Hayters in his role as an ambassador for NetBet\u00a0Sports Betting<\/a>. \u201cThere are more options for Mikel now if he\u2019s not on form. Kai Havertz is back, Gabriel Jesus is already playing again, and Mikel Merino has shown he\u2019s a great backup when he steps into the front line. Even Leandro Trossard can do a job there, so there are plenty of options up front.\u201d<\/p>\n

Parlour feels the criticism of Gy\u00f6keres ignores the scale of the challenge he has taken on since arriving in north London.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s made a big step up,\u201d he said. \u201cWhen you go to Arsenal, you\u2019re going to another level. The pressure\u2019s on you straight away. It\u2019s a tougher league and you\u2019re playing for a club expected to win the title.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Drawing comparisons, Parlour highlighted David Raya\u2019s successful transition as an example of how difficult that step can be. \u201cAt Arsenal, you can\u2019t afford mistakes. There\u2019s far more pressure, and Gy\u00f6keres is no different,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n

While acknowledging the striker needs to add goals, Parlour stressed the importance of time, confidence and understanding with teammates, something that is hard to build amid a relentless schedule.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe just needs a few more goals and that belief,\u201d Parlour said. \u201cYou\u2019ve got to learn what runs he makes and what his instincts are. That comes from work on the training ground, but it\u2019s difficult when you\u2019re playing three matches a week and trying to avoid more injuries.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Parlour drew on his own Arsenal era to underline the point, referencing the slow starts of club legends. \u201cDennis Bergkamp, Thierry Henry and Robert Pires didn\u2019t start like that. They all needed time to adapt to English football and to each other. When it clicked, there was no stopping them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Injuries, however, remain a major concern. Parlour admitted he has rarely seen a list like Arsenal\u2019s current one.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll these games are more taxing on the body,\u201d he said. \u201cBen White picking up a hamstring injury after working so hard to get fit again is so harsh. Suddenly you\u2019re without Gabriel, Saliba, Timber, Mosquera, Calafiori through suspension, and midfielders are having to drop in. What next?\u201d<\/p>\n

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Despite those setbacks, Parlour is unconvinced Arsenal will dip heavily into the January transfer market.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d be amazed if they can after spending so much in the summer,\u201d he admitted. \u201cAnd do they need to? The squad is so strong, even with injuries. With players like Havertz and big Gabriel not far off returning, they should be strong enough. That said, Arsenal are never shy to spend if the right player becomes available, so nothing would surprise me.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Ray Parlour has moved to defend much-discussed striker Viktor Gy\u00f6keres, insisting Arsenal supporters must show patience as the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":350993,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[440],"tags":[498,152502,152503,49,152504,48,13645,68587,132012,71265,94750,117842,574,71353,94751,561,82,79696,15145],"class_list":["post-350992","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-soccer","tag-arsenal","tag-arsenal-supporters","tag-ben-white","tag-ca","tag-calafiori","tag-canada","tag-david","tag-gabriel-jesus","tag-kai-havertz","tag-leandro-trossard","tag-mikel-merino","tag-mosquera","tag-premier-league","tag-ray-parlour","tag-saliba","tag-soccer","tag-sports","tag-thierry-henry","tag-viktor-gyokeres"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/350992","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=350992"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/350992\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/350993"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=350992"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=350992"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=350992"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}