Manchester United will have more than a few needs to address in the summer 2025 transfer window, and if they truly embrace the long-term approach that Ruben Amorim is touting – and that they need – they will take the prudent approach instead of shoehorning signings.
However, there is one need that Manchester United need to immediately address if they want to be successful enough in the Premier League to get to European football every year, and that is, simply put, scoring more goals.
As many expected, the summer 2024 signing of all-around striker Joshua Zirkzee has not yielded much in the form of goal-scoring output. Manchester United do not have a single striker with even five goals, as their leading scorers are playmaker Bruno Fernandes with eight and winger Amad Diallo with six.
Viktor Gyokeres wants the Champions League
Amorim’s former star at Sporting CP Viktor Gyokeres is widely seen as the dream target for United’s striker problem, as the Swedish international has scored a jaw-dropping 38 goals for Sporting in the Primeira Liga so far this season.
According to a report from Christopher Michel of Fussball.News, Gyokeres wants to play Champions League football next season, and with Premier League rivals Arsenal and Chelsea interested, Manchester United will reportedly need to win the Europa League in order to realistically have a shot at Gyokeres despite the potential advantage Amorim could afford them.
It makes sense for the most in-demand striker on the transfer market to want Champions League football, and it also makes sense that this desire would beat out any potential affinity for Amorim.
Manchester United have more reasons to want to win the Europa League and subsequently qualify for the Champions League than signing Gyokeres, but nabbing the 26-year-old star striker would be more than just a small bonus.
Manchester United’s alternatives would also want UCL football
There are other strikers out there whom Manchester United could sign this summer, such as Victor Osimhen and Benjamin Sesko, but with how in-demand these players are, too, they would also very likely only lean towards Man United if they can secure Champions League football in 2025/26.
Man United’s biggest barrier to winning the Europa League is current semifinal opponent Athletic Club, a top-four side in Spanish football. Thereafter, Manchester United would face either underdogs Bodo Glimt or fellow fallen Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur in the Europa League Final.
It looks like Gyokeres is the main target for Manchester United at striker, and if they want his 40 goals on their side next season, they are going to need to make sure they get into the Champions League by any means necessary.
Joe Soriano covers Tottenham for FanSided’s Hotspur HQ and writes about Real Madrid for The Real Champs. He has extensive experience covering world football since 2014. Joe is an editor for The Trivela Effect, where he covers the biggest clubs in European football. He has watched professional sports regularly since 2002 and can be found playing the same sports he covers with his friends.