Sporting Lisbon striker Viktor Gyokeres has downplayed speculation surrounding a potential £73m transfer to Chelsea in an interview with Portuguese media this week.
In the lead-up to the January transfer window, the Blues had been linked with several potential new signings, including the likes of Brentford's Ivan Toney and Napoli forward Victor Osimhen.
Although manager Mauricio Pochettino has not made any additions to his squad just yet, there is still time to finalise deals before the deadline on February 1.
According to Portuguese news outlet Record, Chelsea were lining up an offer believed to be in the region of £73m for Gyokeres this month.
However, the Sporting Lisbon attacker responded to the speculation linking him with a move to London by telling Sports TV, via O Jogo, that he is paying no attention to the rumours.
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"I don't think anything about it," he said. "I'm here and we have important games, I'm focused on that. There's a lot of talk on social media and other places, but I'm not focused on that. I don't think about anything else. I'm here now and I'm 100% focused on this and the club."
Gyokeres has been in excellent form for Sporting this season and has already scored 22 goals in 25 appearances for the current Primeira Liga leaders.
"Yes, but it's far from over. We can't enjoy it too much, but it's been good so far. We're playing well as a team," Gyokeres added when asked if he was in the best form of his career.
Sporting spent just £17m to sign Gyokeres from Championship side Coventry City in 2023, and since joining, the striker has made 30 goal contributions for the Lions across all competitions.
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It is understood that Sporting are in no hurry to sell Gyokeres, whose current deal with the club runs until the summer of 2028.
A new striker has been a focal point of speculation for Chelsea since the opening of the transfer window.
Nicolas Jackson is currently on international duty with Senegal at the Africa Cup of Nations, and Christopher Nkunku is still working his way back to full fitness after a lengthy spell on the sidelines.
Armando Broja has struggled to nail down a regular starting place since his return to fitness and has been linked with a move away from Stamford Bridge this month with Aston Villa and West Ham United among the sides that are understood to be keeping tabs on the Albanian striker.
Chelsea have endured a mixed start to the season and are currently in ninth place in the Premier League standings, 12 points behind the top four.
Devesh Jaganath
