Sam Allardyce claims Chelsea and Liverpool stars are better than Viktor Gyokeres

Ex-Premier League manager Sam Allardyce (Picture: Getty)

Sam Allardyce has stirred the pot once again – this time by ranking Chelsea ’s Joao Pedro and Liverpool ’s Hugo Ekitike ahead of Arsenal ’s new £64m striker Viktor Gyokeres .

Gyokeres joined the Gunners from Sporting in the summer and will be expected to shoulder the burden of delivering goals as Arsenal push for their first Premier League title in over two decades.

The Swedish striker scored 97 goals in 102 games for Sporting and twice helped them to the Portuguese title, but has netted just three times in ten appearances so far for Arsenal.

Speaking on the No Tippy Tappy Football show , former England boss Allardyce picked his top ten Premier League strikers of the season so far.

Allardyce placed Manchester City’s Erling Haaland top of the pack, followed by Liverpool’s Alexander Isak and Crystal Palace’s Jean-Philippe Mateta in third.

Chelsea’s new No. 9 Joao Pedro was ranked fourth, ahead of Liverpool’s Hugo Ekitike in fifth.

Rounding off his list were Chris Wood (sixth), Yoane Wissa (seventh), Gyokeres (eighth), Ollie Watkins (ninth) and Liam Delap (tenth).

Viktor Gyokeres has failed to score in his last three matches (Picture: Getty)

The ex-England boss admitted he is yet to be convinced Gyokeres has what it takes to fire Arsenal to a long-awaited league title.

‘Arsenal have needed a striker, haven’t they? They’ve been searching for a frontman for a long time, like everybody seemed to be,’ Allardyce said.

‘Is he going to be good enough to get Arsenal the title? They need to win; there’s big pressure on them.’

While Allardyce has his doubts about Gyokeres, he was far more complimentary about Chelsea’s summer signing Joao Pedro.

Pedro joined Chelsea from Brighton in a deal worth £60m and has hit the ground running at Stamford Bridge, scoring five goals and providing three assists in 12 league appearances.

‘I think that over the last few years he has proven to be a top player who can score goals,’ Allardyce added. ‘I think that is what we all want to see.

Joao Pedro has started every league match under Enzo Maresca (Picture: Getty)

‘I would like to see a lot more strikers in the Premier League than there are now. But there does seem to be a shortage worldwide, sadly.’

As well as impressing in the Premier League either as a No. 10 or through the middle, Pedro also netted in the Club World Cup final against PSG.

New Liverpool star Ekitike also drew praise from Allardyce after his high-profile move from Eintracht Frankfurt.

‘Another big player for Liverpool,’ he said. ‘It was a shock to see them buy so many players after winning the league.

Hugo Ekitike faces fierce competition from Alexander Isak (Picture: Getty)

‘But Arne Slot has obviously gone to the board and asked for a lot. I think he’s probably right. More power in the frontline is absolutely essential given the number of games they will have this season.’

Liverpool paid a fee that could rise to £79m for 23-year-old Frenchman Ekitike, who has already scored five goals this season – including the winner in his Merseyside derby debut.

However, he did blot his copybook after being sent off for taking his shirt off in celebration following a late Carabao Cup winner against Southampton.

Gyokeres’ start to life at Arsenal has been more subdued, with two of his three goals for Arsenal coming against newly-promoted Leeds United.

Despite his underwhelming start at the Emirates Stadium, Arsenal currently sit top of the table with five wins from seven.

Chelsea, meanwhile, sit seventh with three wins, including Saturday’s dramatic 2-1 win over defending champions Liverpool, sealed by a 95th-minute winner from Estevao.

After the international break, the Blues travel to Nottingham Forest while Arsenal make the short trip across London to face Fulham. Liverpool will look to return to winning ways against Manchester United.