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Should Viktor Gyökeres transforms into the striker that every Arsenal followers have been hoping for, then perhaps they will recall this night as the point his fortune turned around. According to the classic forward’s saying, it makes no difference how they go in.

Following a streak of nine matches for his team and national side without a goal and pressure mounting on the man brought in for a substantial sum in the summer, a huge wave of relief swept over the Emirates Stadium when Gyökeres guided in from close range via a ricochet off David Hancko during a thrilling second half when Mikel Arteta’s side proved yet again that they are here to compete this season.

Remarkable Shift in Luck

Within moments and to the delight of the stadium crowd, his mask celebration borrowed from the villain Bane in Batman, whose signature quote is “I was ignored before the mask,” was showcased again after forcing home from Gabriel Magalhães’s header following a Declan Rice corner to seal the victory against Atlético Madrid. On the sidelines, Arteta punched the air and signaled enthusiastically in the direction of his recent signing, of whom he has spent the previous 14 days insisting the finest displays lay ahead.

“Such is soccer, and we must not assume a player to change contexts and have him do the same thing instantly,” the Arsenal manager stated in a discussion with the Spanish newspaper Marca before this game. “Circumstances vary greatly. Every footballer globally need one thing: their mental condition to be at its optimum. I advised Viktor in our first meeting that the No 9 I desired at Arsenal was someone who could hold up mentally when they went six or eight games without scoring. Otherwise, you’re not suited at this level. That’s why I have a lot of faith in him.”

Youthful Struggles

It was as a 14-year-old playing for IFK Aspudden-Tellus, who are located in Stockholm’s southside districts, that Gyökeres first recognized he would have to toughen up to thrive in his vocation. Criticised after a disappointing display by a coach who said he didn’t have the mentality to make it in professional play, he was eventually transformed from a flank attacker into a striker after joining Brommapojkarna two years later. “That one stuck with me and I think about it often,” he said in a recent interview.

Testing Period

Without a goal since the victory against Nottingham Forest here back on 13 September, this has been one of the toughest stretches of his professional life. Gyökeres was sharply rebuked after Sweden were beaten by Kosovo and Switzerland in World Cup qualifiers in the previous 14 days, with one newspaper labeling his display against the latter as “absent.”

He recorded an remarkable 54 goals in 52 appearances in all tournaments for Sporting last season, so the problem is clearly not his goal conversion. As the manager has often noted, his overall contribution has added a new layer in attack, even if the opportunities have not come to him.

Game Analysis

This was plainly visible during the first half of this top-level clash between two teams that had initially seemed evenly matched. There was a impression that Gyökeres was pressing too much to impress as he bustled about like a force of nature during the opening minutes. An Eberechi Eze shot that glanced on to the bar inside the opening five minutes was set up by some clever dribbling on the edge of the Atlético area that cleverly escaped from his opponent, José María Giménez.

Giménez has the aura of a man who could create tension effortlessly 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 likely played a key role to convincing Arteta to secure the signing.

Constant Hustle

Nevertheless having drawn comments that he was overweight 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 effort disallowed for offside after converting Bukayo Saka’s cross and it did not happen until later that the Swede had his first sight of goal.

A exquisite touch from Martinelli set Gyökeres up perfectly, only for Jan Oblak to promptly save an unconvincing toe-poke towards goal. At that point it must have seemed as if the breakthrough would elude him. But the dam burst when Gabriel scored with a header Rice’s free-kick and Gyökeres was ready to capitalize as the forward with the disguise left his imprint. “Ideally this is the beginning of a great run,” said a delighted Arteta.