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Should Viktor Gyökeres transforms into the forward that all Arsenal fans have been wishing for, then perhaps they will recall this night as the juncture his destiny changed. As the old striker’s mantra goes, it makes no difference how they find the net.

After a run of nine matches for Arsenal and Sweden without a goal and pressure mounting on the man brought in for a substantial sum in the offseason, a huge wave of relief engulfed the Emirates Stadium when Gyökeres tapped in from near distance via a deflection off David Hancko during a thrilling second half when Mikel Arteta’s side showed again that they are here to compete this season.

Remarkable Shift in Form

Within moments and to the delight of the local supporters, his face-covering routine inspired by the antagonist Bane in Batman, whose famous line is “I was ignored before the mask,” 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 punched the air and gestured animatedly in the direction of his recent signing, of whom he has spent the past two weeks insisting the best was yet to come.

“That’s the game, and we can’t expect a player to change contexts and have him replicate his form immediately,” the Arsenal manager said in an interview with the Spanish newspaper Marca prior to the match. “Situations are not the same. All players in the world need one thing: their mental condition to be at its best. I advised Viktor in our first meeting that the striker I desired at Arsenal was someone who could hold up mentally when they went six or eight games without scoring. Otherwise, you’re not good enough at this level. That’s why I have a lot of faith in him.”

Early Challenges

It was as a 14-year-old playing for IFK Aspudden-Tellus, who are located in Stockholm’s southside districts, that Gyökeres first realised he would have to build resilience to make it in his chosen profession. Admonished after a poor performance by a coach who said he was not mentally equipped to make it in elite soccer, he ultimately switched from a flank attacker into a striker after signing for Brommapojkarna two years later. “That one stuck with me and I think about it often,” he said not long ago.

Difficult Phase

Without a goal since the win over Nottingham Forest here back on 13 September, this has been one of the hardest times of his career. Gyökeres was heavily criticised after Sweden were defeated by Kosovo and Switzerland in World Cup qualifiers in the previous 14 days, with one newspaper labeling his display against the latter as “invisible.”

He recorded an remarkable 54 goals in 52 appearances throughout the season for Sporting last season, so the difficulty is obviously not his goal conversion. In line with the coach’s repeated comments, his overall contribution has added a new layer in the final third, even if the openings have not been in his favor.

Key Moments

This was clearly apparent during the opening period of this elite matchup between two teams that had originally looked closely contested. There was a impression that Gyökeres was pressing too much to stand out as he ran aggressively like a disruptive presence during the opening minutes. An Eberechi Eze shot that deflected on to the bar inside the initial stages 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 start a fight in an empty bar but is vastly experienced at this stage compared with Gyökeres, who is playing in only his second Champions League campaign after bagging a triple for Sporting against Manchester City last season that must have gone a long way to influencing Arteta to make the move.

Unyielding Drive

Nevertheless having attracted criticism that he was out of shape after missing most of pre-season in Portugal, Arsenal’s noticeably leaner striker pursued each opportunity as if his life depended on it. Giménez was fooled into conceding a booking when Gyökeres made contact on the edge of the Atlético area having merely stood his ground. Gabriel Martinelli saw his effort disallowed for offside after converting Bukayo Saka’s cross and it only came in the second half that the Swede had his first sight of goal.

A brilliant pass from Martinelli set Gyökeres up perfectly, only for Jan Oblak to swiftly block an weak effort towards goal. At that stage it must have felt like the breakthrough would elude him. But the goals flowed when Gabriel scored with a header Rice’s free-kick and Gyökeres was ready to capitalize as the man in the mask announced his presence. “With any luck this is the commencement of a prolific period,” said a delighted Arteta.