Viktor Gyokeres started and scored for Sporting on Friday night as the reigning Portuguese champions began their title defence with a win.
Gyokeres, 26, played the full 90 minutes and scored the team’s third goal in a 3-1 victory at home to Rio Ave. The Swedish international did miss Sporting’s first two pre-season friendlies against Union Saint-Gilloise and Sevilla before returning a fortnight ago against Athletic Club.
He played an hour in that game and then played the entirety of the Portuguese Super Cup, assisting two goals, albeit as Porto won 4-3 after extra time. But six days later, Gyokeres turned from provider to goalscorer.
Following the match, the player shared a photo of himself on his Instagram story. “Let’s go,” Gyokeres captioned the post, punctuating it with a lion emoji, the animal the team takes its nickname from.
