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If Viktor Gyökeres develops into the attacker that each Arsenal followers have been praying for, then possibly they will reflect on this night as the moment his fortune shifted. In keeping with the timeless attacker’s creed, it makes no difference how they hit the back of the net.

After a run of nine matches for Arsenal and Sweden without a goal and pressure mounting on the man signed for £64m in the summer, a huge wave of relief washed over the Emirates Stadium when Gyökeres scuffed home from near distance via a glance off David Hancko during a pulsating second half when Mikel Arteta’s side proved yet again that they are serious contenders this season.

Stunning Reversal in Luck

Within moments and to the delight of the stadium crowd, his Bane-inspired gesture modeled after the antagonist Bane in Batman, whose famous line is “I was ignored before the mask,” was showcased again after forcing home from Gabriel Magalhães’s header following a Declan Rice corner to finish the demolition against Atlético Madrid. On the sidelines, Arteta punched the air and motioned emphatically in the direction of his new centre forward, of whom he has spent the previous 14 days insisting the best was yet to come.

“That’s the game, and we can’t expect a player to change contexts and have him replicate his form immediately,” the Arsenal manager said in an interview with the Spanish newspaper Marca ahead of the fixture. “Situations are not the same. All players in the world need one thing: their psychological state to be at its peak. I told Viktor in our introductory chat that the No 9 I sought for Arsenal was someone who could hold up mentally when they experienced a dry spell without scoring. If not, you’re not cut out at this standard. That’s why I have a lot of faith in him.”

Early Challenges

When he was just 14 playing for IFK Aspudden-Tellus, who are situated in Stockholm’s outskirts, that Gyökeres first understood he would have to build resilience to make it in his vocation. Rebuked after a disappointing display by a coach who said he didn’t have the mentality to succeed in top-level football, he was eventually transformed from a wide player into a striker after signing for Brommapojkarna two years later. “That comment resonated and I still remember it today,” he said in a recent interview.

Difficult Phase

Without a goal since the triumph over Nottingham Forest in London back on 13 September, this has been one of the toughest stretches of his time in football. Gyökeres was widely panned after Sweden were defeated by Kosovo and Switzerland in World Cup qualifiers in the previous 14 days, with one newspaper characterizing his outing against the latter as “absent.”

He achieved an incredible 54 goals in 52 appearances throughout the season for Sporting last season, so the difficulty is evidently not his scoring ability. As the manager has often noted, his all‑round play has added a new layer in the final third, even if the opportunities have not been in his favor.

Game Analysis

This was certainly in evidence during the opening period of this elite matchup between two teams that had initially seemed evenly matched. There was a feeling that Gyökeres was pressing too much to impress as he bustled about like a disruptive presence during the opening minutes. An Eberechi Eze shot that bounced on to the bar inside the opening five minutes was set up by some quick moves on the edge of the Atlético area that cleverly escaped from his defender, 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 stage compared with Gyökeres, who is participating in just his second Champions League campaign after netting three goals for Sporting against Manchester City last season that must have gone a long way to influencing Arteta to secure the signing.

Relentless Effort

Nevertheless having attracted criticism that he was out of shape after missing most of pre-season in Portugal, Arsenal’s much more svelte-looking striker harried all opponents as if his life depended on it. Giménez was fooled into conceding a caution when Gyökeres made contact on the edge of the Atlético area having only been stationary. Gabriel Martinelli saw his goal ruled out for offside after tapping in Bukayo Saka’s cross and it only came in the second half that the Swede had his opening chance.

A exquisite touch from Martinelli provided a golden opportunity, only for Jan Oblak to quickly smother an unconvincing toe-poke towards goal. At that point it must have felt like the breakthrough would elude him. But the dam burst when Gabriel nodded in Rice’s free-kick and Gyökeres was perfectly positioned to benefit as the masked striker made his mark. “Hopefully this is the commencement of a prolific period,” said a delighted Arteta.