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In the event that Viktor Gyökeres develops into the attacker that every Arsenal supporters have been wishing for, then maybe they will look back on this night as the moment his fortune turned around. As the old striker’s mantra goes, it isn’t important how they hit the back of the net.

On the back of nine matches for Arsenal and Sweden without a goal and expectations rising on the man acquired for a hefty fee in the close season, a tremendous feeling of ease engulfed the Emirates Stadium when Gyökeres tapped in from close range via a ricochet off David Hancko during a thrilling second half when Mikel Arteta’s side demonstrated once more that they are here to compete this season.

Stunning Reversal in Form

Less than three minutes later and to the excitement of the stadium crowd, his mask celebration modeled after the villain Bane in Batman, whose famous line is “I was ignored before the mask,” was given another airing after bundling over from Gabriel Magalhães’s header following a Declan Rice corner to seal the victory against Atlético Madrid. On the sidelines, Arteta celebrated wildly and gestured animatedly in the direction of his recent signing, of whom he has spent the previous 14 days insisting the peak performance awaited.

“Such is soccer, and we shouldn’t anticipate a player to move leagues and have him perform identically right away,” the Arsenal manager said in an interview with the Spanish newspaper Marca ahead of the fixture. “Situations are not the same. Every footballer globally need one thing: their mental condition to be at its peak. I advised Viktor in our introductory chat that the No 9 I wanted for Arsenal was someone who could hold up mentally when they went six or eight games without scoring. Failing that, you’re not good enough at this level. That’s why I have a strong confidence in him.”

Early Challenges

It was as a 14-year-old playing for IFK Aspudden-Tellus, who are based in Stockholm’s southern suburbs, that Gyökeres first understood he would have to develop a thick skin to make it in his selected career. Criticised after a subpar outing by a coach who said he was not mentally equipped to make it in professional play, he was eventually transformed from a wide player into a striker after joining Brommapojkarna two years later. “That comment resonated and I think about it often,” he said recently.

Testing Period

Having failed to score since the triumph over Nottingham Forest at home back on 13 September, this has been one of the hardest times of his career. Gyökeres was sharply rebuked after Sweden were defeated by Kosovo and Switzerland in World Cup qualifiers in the past fortnight, with one newspaper characterizing his outing against the latter as “invisible.”

He recorded an incredible 54 goals in 52 appearances throughout the season for Sporting last season, so the difficulty is obviously not his finishing. In line with the coach’s repeated comments, his overall contribution has provided additional depth in attack, even if the openings have not fallen his way.

Key Moments

This was certainly in evidence during the initial 45 minutes of this top-level clash between two teams that had at first appeared evenly matched. There was a feeling that Gyökeres was pressing too much to make an impact as he bustled about 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 set up 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 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 probably significantly contributed to persuading Arteta to make the move.

Unyielding Drive

Nevertheless having drawn comments that he was out of shape after missing most of pre-season in Portugal, Arsenal’s noticeably leaner striker chased down every ball as if his career hung in the balance. Giménez was fooled into conceding a caution when Gyökeres made contact on the edge of the Atlético area having merely stood his ground. Gabriel Martinelli saw his attempt canceled for offside after finishing 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 hesitant shot towards goal. Then it must have seemed as if the opening goal would elude him. But the dam burst when Gabriel headed home Rice’s free-kick and Gyökeres was ready to capitalize as the forward with the disguise left his imprint. “With any luck this is the commencement of a prolific period,” said a delighted Arteta.