Potter backs Gyokeres and Isak to fire together for Sweden at World Cup

Graham Potter has revealed that Viktor Gyokeres and Alexander Isak have never started together under his management of Sweden, and says unlocking that partnership this summer is one of his most anticipated challenges ahead of the World Cup.

Gyokeres, who worked under Potter at Brighton before moving to Sporting CP and then Arsenal, enjoyed a remarkable debut Premier League season at the Emirates — contributing to the club’s title win and scoring four goals across two World Cup qualifying games to help Sweden reach the tournament. Isak, meanwhile, endured a difficult first year at Liverpool following his £125 million move to Anfield, with injuries disrupting what Potter described as a “nightmare” spell — though the Sweden boss was quick to defend the striker’s standing.

“The honest truth is that we haven’t played with them together yet in my time, so that’s going to be exciting, to be able to develop that,” Potter said. “Clearly, they are top players and top lads who are desperate to do well for the national team. The job is how we can use their attributes and qualities in the best way for us. Because if we can get them enjoying their football and if we can get them firing, they are top players.”

Potter drew a direct line between Gyokeres’s unconventional path — from Brighton’s academy to Portugal and then England’s top flight — and the striker’s resilience. “The fact that he has done that, and he’s contributed to the team, and the team is in this place, I think he’s had a brilliant season,” he said.

On Isak, Potter was measured but emphatic about the 25-year-old’s quality. “Alex has had a difficult spell at Liverpool because of injury. But the player doesn’t change. His quality doesn’t change. He’s still a top, top, top player,” he said. “Sometimes everybody’s career can go up and down, but the quality of the person and the quality of the player is undeniable from our perspective.”

Potter also acknowledged the structural pressures that can weigh on players arriving at elite clubs. “At the big clubs, the big change means big pressure and expectation; and then expectation versus reality, and as soon as that gap starts to become too big, you can have problems,” he said — a candid reflection from a manager who has experienced that dynamic first-hand during his own time in club management.

With both strikers now fit and available, Sweden will be looking to the Gyokeres–Isak axis as the centrepiece of their World Cup campaign.