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In the event that Viktor Gyökeres goes on to become the striker that every Arsenal supporters have been wishing for, then possibly they will reflect on this night as the juncture his luck turned around. In keeping with the timeless attacker’s creed, it doesn’t matter how they find the net.

After a run of nine matches for his team and national side without a goal and scrutiny increasing on the man acquired for a hefty fee in the close season, a huge wave of relief washed over the Emirates Stadium when Gyökeres guided in from point-blank via a ricochet off David Hancko during a electrifying second half when Mikel Arteta’s side demonstrated once more that they are serious contenders this season.

Stunning Reversal in Form

Within moments and to the joy of the home faithful, his mask celebration borrowed from the character Bane in Batman, whose famous line is “nobody cared until I put on the mask,” was showcased again after bundling over from Gabriel Magalhães’s header following a Declan Rice corner to seal the victory against Atlético Madrid. Down on the touchline, Arteta punched the air and signaled enthusiastically in the direction of his star striker, of whom he has spent the past two weeks insisting the peak performance awaited.

“Such is soccer, and we shouldn’t anticipate a player to move leagues and have him do the same thing instantly,” the Arsenal manager remarked in a conversation with the Spanish newspaper Marca prior to the match. “Things are very different. All players in the world need one thing: their psychological state to be at its optimum. I advised Viktor in our initial discussion that the center forward I desired at Arsenal was someone who could stay resilient when they experienced a dry spell without scoring. Otherwise, you’re not good enough at this level. That’s why I have a great belief in him.”

Early Challenges

When he was just 14 playing for IFK Aspudden-Tellus, who are situated in Stockholm’s outskirts, that Gyökeres first recognized he would have to toughen up to make it in his chosen profession. Criticised after a disappointing display by a coach who said he was not mentally equipped to succeed in top-level football, he ultimately switched from a wide player into a striker after joining Brommapojkarna two years later. “Those words lingered and I think about it often,” he said in a recent interview.

Testing Period

Having failed to score since the triumph over Nottingham Forest at home back on 13 September, this has been one of the toughest stretches of his career. Gyökeres was widely panned after Sweden were overcome by Kosovo and Switzerland in World Cup qualifiers in the last two weeks, with one newspaper characterizing his outing against the latter as “unnoticeable.”

He managed an astounding 54 goals in 52 appearances throughout the season for Sporting last season, so the issue is obviously not his goal conversion. As Arteta has frequently pointed out, his all‑round play has added a new layer in offense, even if the chances have not been in his favor.

Game Analysis

This was plainly visible during the opening period of this high‑quality encounter between two teams that had originally looked evenly matched. There was a feeling that Gyökeres was pressing too much to stand out as he bustled about like a force of nature during the opening minutes. An Eberechi Eze shot that glanced on to the bar inside the opening five minutes was set up by some clever dribbling on the edge of the Atlético area that skillfully evaded from his marker, José María Giménez.

Giménez has the aura of a man who could start a fight in an empty bar but is highly seasoned 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 convincing Arteta to take the plunge.

Unyielding Drive

Nevertheless having drawn comments that he was overweight after sitting out the buildup in Portugal, Arsenal’s considerably trimmer striker harried all opponents as if his future was at stake. Giménez was tricked into conceding a yellow card when Gyökeres ran into him on the edge of the Atlético area having merely stood his ground. Gabriel Martinelli saw his goal ruled out for offside after converting Bukayo Saka’s cross and it only came in the second half that the Swede had his initial opportunity.

A sumptuous flick from Martinelli provided a golden opportunity, only for Jan Oblak to promptly save an hesitant shot towards goal. At that stage it must have appeared that the opening goal would never come. But the goals flowed when Gabriel headed home Rice’s free-kick and Gyökeres was able to take full advantage as the masked striker announced his presence. “Hopefully this is the beginning of a great run,” said a delighted Arteta.