Wayne Rooney makes feelings clear about Viktor Gyokeres’ performances for Arsenal as he makes bold title claim

Manchester United legend and pundit Wayne Rooney has thrown his weight behind Arsenal striker Viktor Gyokeres amid his mixed start to life at the club. The Sweden international was on target for the Gunners in their narrow 1-0 win over Everton in the Premier League on Saturday.

Rooney revealed in the latest episode of The Wayne Rooney Show that he believes Gyokeres played a key role in the game against Everton despite criticism that had been leveled against him. He admitted that the striker should be scoring more, but stated that he will be important if Arsenal end up winning the league.

"He does a bit more than what you see. Even [on Saturday], he occupies the two centre-backs, [James] Tarkowski and Michael Keane. That creates a bit more space for your number 10 or your wide players who are coming inside. I think he's important for Arsenal. He's doing a job which helps other players, he just hasn't got the goals which you'd expect from him. You maybe don't see it, it's not eye-catching, but he does occupy the centre-back. Can he be better? Of course he can. Should he score more goals playing in that team? Yeah, he should. But I think if Arsenal go on to win the league, then he'll have had a big role to play, definitely", he said (via BBC.com).

Viktor Gyokeres has scored five goals in 15 Premier League appearances for Arsenal since joining from Sporting Club in the summer. The 27-year-old has appeared to struggle at times, with Mikel Merino often selected to lead the line ahead of him.

Rooney previously picked Gyokeres as one of the league's best players, and he has doubled down on his opinion of the former Swansea City striker. He ended a five-game goal drought against the Toffees, lashing home from the penalty spot to give his side a 1-0 win.

Arsenal scraped win over Everton to regain Premier League lead

Arsenal claimed a narrow 1-0 win over Everton in their Premier League clash on Saturday to return to the summit of the standings. The Gunners claimed a third successive win across all competitions, putting David Moyes' side to the sword at the Hill Dickinson Stadium.

Mikel Arteta's side scored the game's only goal in the 27th minute through summer signing Viktor Gyokeres. The Sweden international stepped up to fire home a penalty after Jake O'Brien blatantly handled the ball inside the Everton penalty area.

The Gunners did not manage to score a second goal but held off the Toffees for a fourth clean sheet in their last ten matches. The win took them back above Manchester City, whose 3-0 win over West Ham earlier in the day took them to the summit of the league table.

Edited by Sulayman Salahudeen