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In the event that Viktor Gyökeres develops into the striker that every Arsenal supporters have been praying for, then perhaps they will look back on this night as the juncture his fortune turned around. In keeping with the timeless attacker’s creed, it makes no difference how they go in.

After a run of nine matches for Arsenal and Sweden without a goal and expectations rising on the man acquired for a hefty fee in the offseason, a massive sense of release swept over the Emirates Stadium when Gyökeres guided in from close range via a deflection off David Hancko during a pulsating second half when Mikel Arteta’s side proved yet again that they are serious contenders this season.

Dramatic Turnaround in Luck

Less than three minutes later and to the joy of the stadium crowd, his Bane-inspired gesture inspired by the character Bane in Batman, whose signature quote is “nobody cared until I put on the mask,” was repeated once more after kneeing in from Gabriel Magalhães’s header following a Declan Rice corner to complete the rout against Atlético Madrid. Down on the touchline, Arteta raised his fists and signaled enthusiastically in the direction of his new centre forward, of whom he has spent the past two weeks insisting the best was yet to come.

“Such is soccer, and we can’t expect a player to move leagues and have him perform identically right away,” the Arsenal manager said in an interview with the Spanish newspaper Marca before this game. “Things are very different. All players in the world need one thing: their state of mind to be at its peak. I told Viktor in our introductory chat that the striker I sought for Arsenal was someone who could stay resilient when they experienced a dry spell without scoring. Otherwise, you’re not good enough at this standard. That’s why I have a great belief in him.”

Early Challenges

Back in his early teens playing for IFK Aspudden-Tellus, who are located in Stockholm’s southern suburbs, that Gyökeres first realised he would have to develop a thick skin to succeed in his chosen profession. Rebuked after a disappointing display by a coach who said he lacked the mindset to make it in professional play, he ended up being converted from a winger into a striker after joining Brommapojkarna two years later. “Those words lingered and I recall it now,” he said recently.

Challenging Spell

Goal-shy since the triumph over Nottingham Forest at home back on 13 September, this has been one of the hardest times of his professional life. Gyökeres was heavily criticised after Sweden were beaten by Kosovo and Switzerland in World Cup qualifiers in the last two weeks, with one newspaper describing his performance against the latter as “absent.”

He achieved an astounding 54 goals in 52 appearances across all competitions for Sporting last season, so the issue is obviously not his goal conversion. As Arteta has frequently pointed out, his complete game has provided additional depth in offense, even if the openings have not been in his favor.

Key Moments

This was clearly apparent during the first half of this high‑quality encounter between two teams that had originally looked well-balanced. There was a sense that Gyökeres was trying too hard to make an impact as he charged around like a force of nature during the beginning phase. An Eberechi Eze shot that bounced on to the bar inside the first few moments was set up by some clever dribbling on the edge of the Atlético area that cleverly escaped from his marker, José María Giménez.

Giménez has the reputation of a man who could provoke conflict anywhere but is deeply knowledgeable at this level 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 likely played a key role to persuading Arteta to secure the signing.

Constant Hustle

However having drawn comments that he was carrying a few too many pounds after sitting out the buildup in Portugal, Arsenal’s noticeably leaner striker chased down every ball as if his life depended on it. Giménez was fooled into conceding a booking when Gyökeres collided with 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 wasn’t until after the break that the Swede had his first sight of goal.

A sumptuous flick from Martinelli created an ideal chance, only for Jan Oblak to quickly smother an hesitant shot towards goal. At that point it must have appeared that the first score would never come. But the goals flowed when Gabriel headed home Rice’s free-kick and Gyökeres was ready to capitalize as the masked striker left his imprint. “Ideally this is the commencement of a prolific period,” said a delighted Arteta.