I outscored Erling Haaland and Manchester United want to sign me - Man City are now in my sights

If Man City are to emerge from their Champions League trip to Sporting Lisbon with victory, they will almost certainly have to keep prolific goalscorer Viktor Gyokeres quiet.

The Swedish international forward is one of the hottest properties in world football amid his ridiculous goalscoring record for the Portuguese champions.

The 26-year-old scored 43 goals in all competitions last season - five more than City's own prolific forward Erling Haaland - and he has already started this season like a house on fire, too.

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Gyokeres has scored 20 goals in 16 games across all competitions this term and his form has, unsurprisingly, seen him linked with following Sporting manager Ruben Amorim to Manchester United.

He has also been linked with Arsenal, too, and he will provide a major headache for City's defence when the two sides meet at the Jose Alvalade Stadium.

He has taken the unconventional route to stardom, having struggled to make the breakthrough at Brighton and Hove Albion, but it was at Coventry City, under the guidance of manager Mark Robins, where he really made his mark.

His 22 goal haul during the 2022/23 season saw the Sky Blues go within a penalty shootout of winning the Championship play-offs and earning promotion to the Premier League.

His performances in the Championship caught Sporting's eye and the rest, as they say, is history. He has since been widely tipped to join United under Amorim.

And his rise in Portugal has not surprised Robins.

“Listen, it’s all down to Vik," Robins told Coventry Live. "You get guided through your career but the fact that he’s the character that he is, the person he is and the drive that he has, everything is intrinsic; it’s in his DNA.

“I remember saying when we first signed him that he’s in a rush, and that was how it appeared. He was looking to try to move as high as he possibly could do as quickly as he possibly could do. And we were a penalty kick away (in the play-off final) from seeing what he could be like in the Premier League with us.

“Since he has gone to Sporting it is a different league and he is playing with different players and a different quality and he’s gone and shot the lights out there.

"And, as happens, there are a lot of eyes on him, coveting his services, and I am sure Sporting will be as keen to keep hold of him. That remains to be seen but I think he’s one of the top performers and certainly one of the best strikers in Europe now.”

Gyokeres will now look to prove his worth against an injury-ravaged City side. In what will be Amorim's final Champions League game in charge of Sporting, before he joins United on November 11, he won't be the only man keen to make a point against the Premier League champions.