Borussia Dortmund boss singles out Arsenal star for surprise praise after friendly win

Borussia Dortmund head coach Niko Kovac offered one struggling Arsenal star a surprising vote of confidence following Sunday’s 3-2 win.

Mikel Arteta’s side slumped to a second consecutive pre-season defeat, this time in front of their own fans at Emirates Stadium.

Although he got on the scoresheet with a second half penalty, it was another disappointing afternoon for Viktor Gyokeres.

The Sweden international looked well off the pace against Real Betis last week in his first outing since his World Cup exploits against Sweden and was again the focus of much criticism in the aftermath of yesterday’s reversal.

Despite another poor showing, Kovac singled out the former Sporting Lisbon star for surprise praise when asked if any Arsenal players caught his eye.

He said: ‘There are a lot of top players when you see Gyokeres he is strong, he is quick, he is fast he is very direct.

‘We know him very well but I can mention all the players.’

Arteta, meanwhile, has backed ‘warrior’ Bruno Guimaraes to ‘ignite something different’ in the Premier League champions.

Brazil midfielder Guimaraes was introduced to Gunners fans ahead of Sunday’s 3-2 defeat after completing his £75million move from Newcastle.

The 28-year-old, who has signed a four-year deal, bolsters a star-studded midfield which already boasts the likes of Declan Rice, Martin Odegaard, Mikel Merino, Martin Zubimendi and Eberechi Eze.

‘You can see the immediate reaction,” Arteta told the club website after Guimaraes was given a warm reception by supporters.

‘I think he describes himself as a warrior. I think he’s a warrior with a tremendous quality as well and intuition and leadership and charisma that is going to help us, that is going to really ignite something different in the team.

‘I think he’s going to push everybody inside the team as well and that’s the type of player that we need.’