Manchester United’s pursuit of Viktor Gyokeres has collapsed, and the striker’s controversial exit clause could now spark a major standoff between Sporting CP and the player’s representatives.
As reported in today morning’s edition of the Portuguese newspaper A Bola, Gyokeres’ agent, Hasan Çetinkaya, holds an exclusive mandate to negotiate the player’s sale and included a clause obligating Sporting to pay him 10% of any bid over €60 million (£50.7m) that is rejected.
Sporting have vowed to resist any activation of this clause by demanding the full €100 million (£84.5m) release fee in return.
That stance effectively raised the price ceiling and positioned the Lisbon club on a collision course with the agent and any suitors unwilling to meet that figure.
This clause, which equates to a potential €6 million payout if a €60m bid is turned down, was written into Gyokeres’ deal when he arrived in Lisbon. Çetinkaya demanded it as part of a gentleman’s agreement with Sporting, expecting the player would eventually be sold after one season for that amount.
But with offers reportedly falling short of Sporting’s new demands, tensions are boiling over.
According to A Bola, Sporting are now threatening to blow up any negotiations below the full €100 million release clause — especially if they are forced to pay out the €6 million to the agent.
The logic is brutal but simple: if they’re going to lose money paying the agent for rejecting a deal, they might as well hold out for the highest possible fee.
There’s also an open question over who ends up footing the bill if the agent’s clause is enforced. Could Sporting try to offload that cost onto the buying club, demanding €100m to cover the agent’s cut? Or would the player’s camp accept less to facilitate a move?
This escalates the situation significantly, especially for Man United.
The Peoples Person recently covered Portuguese outlet Record’s claim that Gyokeres has “officially” ruled out a move to Old Trafford. His camp reportedly informed Sporting that United are “no longer an option”, despite multiple approaches from the Premier League giants last week.
For now, the only certainty is that the situation is growing more unstable by the day.
From United’s perspective, the drama has made a complicated deal look increasingly unworkable.
Unless Sporting and Çetinkaya resolve their internal power struggle, United, and potentially other suitors will have to look elsewhere for their marquee striker signing this summer.
Featured image: Gualter Fatia via Getty Images
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Raj Dholakia
Raj is a seasoned digital writer and editor with a deep-seated passion for football. With over four years in the digital space, he has contributed to Sportlens, ManUtdNews, and is now proudly writing for The Peoples Person. His work is driven by a commitment to capture the essence of football, delivering content that speaks to the heart of fans worldwide.
