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In the event that Viktor Gyökeres develops into the striker that all Arsenal fans have been wishing for, then perhaps they will look back on this night as the point his fortune shifted. As the old striker’s mantra goes, it isn’t important how they find the net.

After a run of nine matches for his team and national side without a goal and pressure mounting on the man acquired for a hefty fee in the summer, a huge wave of relief washed over the Emirates Stadium when Gyökeres scuffed home from point-blank via a ricochet off David Hancko during a electrifying second half when Mikel Arteta’s side showed again that they are here to compete this season.

Stunning Reversal in Luck

Shortly after and to the delight of the stadium crowd, his Bane-inspired gesture borrowed from the character Bane in Batman, whose famous line is “nobody cared until I put on the mask,” was given another airing after bundling over from Gabriel Magalhães’s header following a Declan Rice corner to complete the rout 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.

“That’s the game, 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 ahead of the fixture. “Circumstances vary greatly. All players in the world need one thing: their mental condition to be at its peak. I advised Viktor in our introductory chat that the center forward I desired at Arsenal was someone who could stay resilient when they went six or eight games without scoring. Otherwise, you’re not suited at this standard. That’s why I have a great belief in him.”

Early Challenges

When he was just 14 playing for IFK Aspudden-Tellus, who are based in Stockholm’s southside districts, that Gyökeres first understood he would have to toughen up to thrive in his chosen profession. Admonished after a poor performance by a coach who said he didn’t have the mentality to excel in professional play, he was eventually transformed from a winger into a striker after moving to Brommapojkarna two years later. “Those words lingered and I think about it often,” he said not long ago.

Testing Period

Having failed to score since the victory against Nottingham Forest at home back on 13 September, this has been one of the hardest times of his professional life. 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 “absent.”

He recorded an remarkable 54 goals in 52 appearances throughout the season for Sporting last season, so the difficulty is clearly not his scoring ability. As the manager has often noted, his complete game has added a new layer in the final third, even if the openings have not been in his favor.

Match Highlights

This was clearly apparent during the initial 45 minutes of this high‑quality encounter between two teams that had at first appeared closely contested. There was a sense that Gyökeres was trying too hard to stand out as he bustled about like a disruptive presence during the early stages. An Eberechi Eze shot that bounced on to the bar inside the initial stages was originated from some quick moves on the edge of the Atlético area that skillfully evaded from his defender, José María Giménez.

The Uruguayan has the reputation of a man who could create tension effortlessly but is deeply knowledgeable at this stage compared with Gyökeres, who is playing in only his second Champions League campaign after scoring a hat-trick for Sporting against Manchester City last season that must have gone a long way to persuading Arteta to make the move.

Unyielding Drive

However having faced scrutiny that he was out of shape after sitting out the buildup in Portugal, Arsenal’s much more svelte-looking striker pursued each opportunity as if his life depended on it. Giménez was tricked into conceding a booking when Gyökeres ran into him on the edge of the Atlético area having simply held his position. Gabriel Martinelli saw his attempt canceled for offside after converting Bukayo Saka’s cross and it wasn’t until after the break that the Swede had his first sight of goal.

A brilliant pass from Martinelli provided a golden opportunity, only for Jan Oblak to promptly save an weak effort towards goal. At that point it must have appeared that the first score would elude him. But the goals flowed when Gabriel headed home Rice’s free-kick and Gyökeres was ready to capitalize as the man in the mask left his imprint. “Hopefully this is the start of some beautiful sequences,” said a delighted Arteta.