🔗 Share this article

Should Viktor Gyökeres develops into the forward that all Arsenal fans have been praying for, then perhaps they will look back on this night as the point his destiny changed. As the old striker’s mantra goes, it makes no difference how they go in.

On the back of nine matches for Arsenal and Sweden without a goal and pressure mounting on the man brought in for a substantial sum in the offseason, a tremendous feeling of ease engulfed the Emirates Stadium when Gyökeres scuffed home from point-blank via a deflection off David Hancko during a pulsating second half when Mikel Arteta’s side showed again that they mean business this season.

Remarkable Shift in Fortune

Shortly after and to the excitement of the stadium crowd, his mask celebration modeled after the antagonist Bane in Batman, whose famous line is “nobody cared until I put on the mask,” was repeated once more after bundling over from Gabriel Magalhães’s header following a Declan Rice corner to seal the victory against Atlético Madrid. From the technical area, Arteta raised his fists and motioned emphatically in the direction of his recent signing, of whom he has spent the past two weeks insisting the best was yet to come.

“Such is soccer, and we must not assume a player to switch environments and have him replicate his form immediately,” the Arsenal manager remarked in a conversation with the Spanish newspaper Marca prior to the match. “Situations are not the same. Every footballer globally need one thing: their psychological state to be at its peak. I told Viktor in our introductory chat that the center forward I desired at Arsenal was someone who could hold up mentally when they faced a goal drought without scoring. If not, you’re not suited at this level. That’s why I have a lot of faith in him.”

Youthful Struggles

Back in his early teens playing for IFK Aspudden-Tellus, who are located in Stockholm’s southside districts, that Gyökeres first realised he would have to build resilience to thrive in his vocation. Rebuked after a disappointing display by a coach who said he didn’t have the mentality to excel in professional play, he ultimately switched from a flank attacker into a striker after joining Brommapojkarna two years later. “Those words lingered and I recall it now,” he said in a recent interview.

Challenging Spell

Without a goal since the victory against Nottingham Forest at home back on 13 September, this has been one of the toughest stretches of his time in football. Gyökeres was heavily criticised after Sweden were defeated by Kosovo and Switzerland in World Cup qualifiers in the past fortnight, with one newspaper labeling his display against the latter as “invisible.”

He recorded an incredible 54 goals in 52 appearances throughout the season for Sporting last season, so the difficulty is clearly not his goal conversion. As Arteta has frequently pointed out, his all‑round play has added a new layer in the final third, even if the chances have not fallen his way.

Match Highlights

This was plainly visible during the first half of this elite matchup between two teams that had at first appeared evenly matched. There was a sense that Gyökeres was pressing too much to make an impact as he ran aggressively like a force of nature during the opening minutes. An Eberechi Eze shot that deflected on to the bar inside the first few moments was set up by some quick moves on the edge of the Atlético area that skillfully evaded from his opponent, José María Giménez.

The Uruguayan has the air of a man who could provoke conflict anywhere but is vastly experienced at this standard compared with Gyökeres, who is participating in just his second Champions League campaign after scoring a hat-trick for Sporting against Manchester City last season that likely played a key role to persuading Arteta to take the plunge.

Constant Hustle

However having drawn comments that he was overweight after sitting out the buildup in Portugal, Arsenal’s much more svelte-looking striker chased down every ball as if his life depended on it. Giménez was fooled into conceding a booking when Gyökeres made contact on the edge of the Atlético area having merely stood his ground. Gabriel Martinelli saw his effort disallowed for offside after finishing Bukayo Saka’s cross and it wasn’t until after the break that the Swede had his initial opportunity.

A exquisite touch from Martinelli provided a golden opportunity, only for Jan Oblak to quickly smother an hesitant shot towards goal. At that stage it must have felt like the breakthrough would never come. But the floodgates opened when Gabriel headed home Rice’s free-kick and Gyökeres was ready to capitalize as the man in the mask made his mark. “With any luck this is the beginning of a great run,” said a delighted Arteta.