Chelsea watch striker and defender SHINE on scouting mission that will upset Arsenal

Robin Bairner

• 1 Mar 2024 06:57 GMT
• 4 min read

Chelsea had a seat reserved for them at Thursday’s clash between Sporting CP and Benfica in the Taca de Portugal, and there were two clear winners in terms of players who would have impressed the Premier League side.

The Blues are set to go shopping again next summer and will primarily be looking for players in attack and defence to strengthen Mauricio Pochettino’s squad. In Lisbon on Thursday, representatives from the Stamford Bridge side saw players in both of these areas impress.

Sporting won the fixture 2-1 and it was striker Viktor Gyokeres who impressed as he scored his 31st goal of the season in 34 appearances across all competitions.

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A Bola marked his performance at 8/10, making him a clear man of the match.

“Another great display!” it reports on Gyokeres’ performance, which Chelsea would have studied intently. “The Swede is a very strong striker who creates countless problems as soon as he is given a few centimetres.

“A surge from midfield, in his trademark style, right from the start, was only stopped close to the area. Every patch of ground is an opportunity to exploit and then destabilise the opponents, like at the half-hour mark, only blocked by a foul by Otamendi.

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“Antonio Silva was more agile, but he also had a lot of problems holding onto the Swede, a true bundle of strength.

“He infects the entire team and the entire stadium every time he picks up the ball and goes for the goal. That's how it became 2-0 with the Swede's drive, which left Otamendi behind, and a finish. Simple, for someone exceptional, of course.”

Gyokeres, likened to Darwin Nunez in the past, has primarily been linked with a move to Arsenal, with Victor Osimhen emerging as Chelsea’s main No.9 target, yet this display was such that the Blues’ thinking might yet be changed.

Antonio Silva catches the eye

The other player to impress was centre-back Antonio Silva, who A Bola described as being “the only Benfica player at the level of Gyokeres.”

It continues: “He taught teammates and other teams there is a formula to neutralise Gyokeres… Sporting’s defensive boss yesterday was a 20-year-old kid.”

Manchester United have been following the centre-back, who has been attracting significant attention from the Premier League as well as other major clubs around Europe. Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid have both been linked with the centre-back.

While Gyokeres shone, it was a quieter night for Sporting defender Ousmane Diomande, who was partly to blame for Benfica’s consolation, and visiting wonderkid Joao Neves. Goncalo Inacio, who was the other player Chelsea might have watched, did not play.