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If Viktor Gyökeres transforms into the striker that all Arsenal supporters have been praying for, then perhaps they will look back on this night as the moment his destiny changed. According to the classic forward’s saying, it doesn’t matter how they hit the back of the net.

On the back 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 offseason, a tremendous feeling of ease engulfed the Emirates Stadium when Gyökeres scuffed home from near distance via a deflection off David Hancko during a electrifying second half when Mikel Arteta’s side demonstrated once more that they are here to compete this season.

Stunning Reversal in Luck

Less than three minutes later and to the joy of the stadium crowd, his mask celebration modeled after the character Bane in Batman, whose signature quote is “I was ignored before the mask,” was showcased again after bundling over from Gabriel Magalhães’s header following a Declan Rice corner to complete the rout against Atlético Madrid. From the technical area, Arteta punched the air and motioned emphatically in the direction of his recent signing, of whom he has spent the last fortnight insisting the peak performance awaited.

“That’s the game, and we shouldn’t anticipate a player to change contexts and have him perform identically right away,” the Arsenal manager stated in a discussion with the Spanish newspaper Marca before this game. “Circumstances vary greatly. Each athlete anywhere need one thing: their state of mind to be at its optimum. I advised Viktor in our introductory chat that the striker I sought for Arsenal was someone who could remain strong psychologically when they faced a goal drought without scoring. Otherwise, you’re not good enough at this standard. That’s why I have a strong confidence in him.”

Formative Hurdles

Back in his early teens playing for IFK Aspudden-Tellus, who are located in Stockholm’s southern suburbs, that Gyökeres first recognized he would have to toughen up to thrive in his vocation. Criticised after a poor performance by a coach who said he lacked the mindset to make it in top-level football, he ended up being converted from a wide player 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

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 time in football. Gyökeres was heavily criticised after Sweden were overcome by Kosovo and Switzerland in World Cup qualifiers in the last two weeks, with one newspaper labeling his display against the latter as “unnoticeable.”

He recorded an astounding 54 goals in 52 appearances in all tournaments for Sporting last season, so the difficulty is clearly not his goal conversion. In line with the coach’s repeated comments, his complete game has provided additional depth in offense, even if the opportunities have not fallen his way.

Match Highlights

This was certainly in evidence during the opening period of this high‑quality encounter between two teams that had initially seemed evenly matched. There was a impression that Gyökeres was trying too hard to impress as he ran aggressively like a disruptive presence during the beginning phase. An Eberechi Eze shot that deflected on to the bar inside the first few moments was originated from some sharp footwork on the edge of the Atlético area that skillfully evaded from his opponent, José María Giménez.

Giménez has the aura of a man who could provoke conflict anywhere but is vastly experienced at this level compared with Gyökeres, who is participating in just his second Champions League campaign after bagging a triple for Sporting against Manchester City last season that probably significantly contributed to persuading Arteta to make the move.

Unyielding Drive

Yet having faced scrutiny that he was overweight after sitting out the buildup in Portugal, Arsenal’s considerably trimmer striker pursued each opportunity as if his career hung in the balance. Giménez was drawn into conceding a caution when Gyökeres collided with him on the edge of the Atlético area having simply held his position. Gabriel Martinelli saw his effort disallowed for offside after finishing Bukayo Saka’s cross and it wasn’t until after the break that the Swede had his opening chance.

A sumptuous flick from Martinelli set Gyökeres up perfectly, only for Jan Oblak to swiftly block an weak effort towards goal. Then it must have felt like the opening goal would never come. But the floodgates opened when Gabriel nodded in Rice’s free-kick and Gyökeres was ready to capitalize as the forward with the disguise left his imprint. “Hopefully this is the commencement of a prolific period,” said a delighted Arteta.