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Should Viktor Gyökeres transforms into the attacker that each Arsenal fans have been wishing for, then perhaps they will look back on this night as the juncture his destiny shifted. In keeping with the timeless attacker’s creed, it makes no difference how they go in.

Following a streak of nine matches for club and country without a goal and scrutiny increasing on the man acquired for a hefty fee in the close season, a huge wave of relief engulfed the Emirates Stadium when Gyökeres tapped in from near distance via a ricochet off David Hancko during a pulsating second half when Mikel Arteta’s side demonstrated once more that they are serious contenders this season.

Stunning Reversal in Fortune

Shortly after and to the excitement of the home faithful, his mask celebration borrowed from the antagonist Bane in Batman, whose signature quote is “attention came only with the disguise,” was showcased again after kneeing in 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 gestured animatedly in the direction of his recent signing, of whom he has spent the past two weeks insisting the finest displays lay ahead.

“Such is soccer, and we must not assume a player to change contexts and have him replicate his form immediately,” the Arsenal manager remarked in a conversation with the Spanish newspaper Marca ahead of the fixture. “Circumstances vary greatly. Each athlete anywhere need one thing: their psychological state to be at its peak. I told Viktor in our first meeting that the No 9 I sought for Arsenal was someone who could hold up mentally when they faced a goal drought without scoring. If not, you’re not good enough at this tier. That’s why I have a great belief in him.”

Youthful Struggles

Back in his early teens playing for IFK Aspudden-Tellus, who are situated in Stockholm’s southside districts, that Gyökeres first understood he would have to toughen up to make it in his selected career. Admonished after a subpar outing by a coach who said he didn’t have the mentality to make it in top-level football, he was eventually transformed from a wide player into a striker after joining Brommapojkarna two years later. “Those words lingered and I think about it often,” he said recently.

Testing Period

Goal-shy since the win over Nottingham Forest at home back on 13 September, this has been one of the most testing periods of his professional life. Gyökeres was widely panned after Sweden were beaten by Kosovo and Switzerland in World Cup qualifiers in the past fortnight, with one newspaper describing his performance against the latter as “unnoticeable.”

He achieved an incredible 54 goals in 52 appearances across all competitions for Sporting last season, so the issue is clearly not his goal conversion. As the manager has often noted, his all‑round play has added a new layer in the final third, even if the openings 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 impression that Gyökeres was overexerting himself to make an impact as he ran aggressively like a bull in a china shop during the opening minutes. An Eberechi Eze shot that bounced on to the bar inside the initial stages was created by some sharp footwork on the edge of the Atlético area that cleverly escaped from his defender, José María Giménez.

The defender has the reputation of a man who could start a fight in an empty bar but is highly seasoned at this level 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 must have gone a long way to influencing Arteta to take the plunge.

Relentless Effort

Nevertheless having attracted criticism that he was overweight after missing most of pre-season in Portugal, Arsenal’s considerably trimmer striker pursued each opportunity as if his future was at stake. Giménez was tricked into conceding a booking 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 converting Bukayo Saka’s cross and it wasn’t until after the break that the Swede had his initial opportunity.

A brilliant pass from Martinelli created an ideal chance, only for Jan Oblak to promptly save an weak effort towards goal. At that stage it must have felt like the breakthrough would elude him. But the goals flowed when Gabriel nodded in Rice’s free-kick and Gyökeres was perfectly positioned to benefit as the masked striker made his mark. “Ideally this is the beginning of a great run,” said a delighted Arteta.