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If Viktor Gyökeres develops into the attacker that every 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 doesn’t matter how they go in.

After a run of nine matches for Arsenal and Sweden without a goal and pressure mounting on the man acquired for a hefty fee in the offseason, a huge wave of relief washed over the Emirates Stadium when Gyökeres guided in from close range via a ricochet off David Hancko during a electrifying second half when Mikel Arteta’s side proved yet again that they are here to compete this season.

Stunning Reversal in Fortune

Within moments and to the delight of the local supporters, his face-covering routine modeled after the villain Bane in Batman, whose famous line is “I was ignored before the mask,” was showcased again after forcing home from Gabriel Magalhães’s header following a Declan Rice corner to finish the demolition against Atlético Madrid. Down on the touchline, Arteta celebrated wildly and gestured animatedly in the direction of his new centre forward, of whom he has spent the past two weeks insisting the best was yet to come.

“This is football, and we shouldn’t anticipate a player to move leagues and have him replicate his form immediately,” the Arsenal manager remarked in a conversation with the Spanish newspaper Marca before this game. “Situations are not the same. Each athlete anywhere need one thing: their psychological state to be at its optimum. I advised Viktor in our first meeting that the center forward I wanted for Arsenal was someone who could stay resilient when they faced a goal drought without scoring. If not, 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 situated in Stockholm’s outskirts, that Gyökeres first recognized he would have to build resilience to thrive in his selected career. Rebuked after a subpar outing by a coach who said he lacked the mindset to excel in elite soccer, he was eventually transformed from a flank attacker into a striker after signing for Brommapojkarna two years later. “Those words lingered and I think about it often,” he said not long ago.

Testing Period

Goal-shy since the victory against Nottingham Forest in London back on 13 September, this has been one of the hardest times of his career. Gyökeres was sharply rebuked after Sweden were overcome by Kosovo and Switzerland in World Cup qualifiers in the previous 14 days, with one newspaper characterizing his outing against the latter as “unnoticeable.”

He achieved an remarkable 54 goals in 52 appearances across all competitions for Sporting last season, so the issue is evidently not his goal conversion. In line with the coach’s repeated comments, his overall contribution has provided additional depth in attack, even if the opportunities have not come to him.

Match Highlights

This was plainly visible during the opening period of this high‑quality encounter between two teams that had initially seemed well-balanced. There was a sense that Gyökeres was overexerting himself to impress as he ran aggressively like a force of nature during the opening minutes. An Eberechi Eze shot that deflected on to the bar inside the initial stages was created by some sharp footwork on the edge of the Atlético area that niftily took him away from his defender, José María Giménez.

The defender has the air of a man who could create tension effortlessly but is highly seasoned at this level compared with Gyökeres, who is competing in merely his second Champions League campaign after netting three goals for Sporting against Manchester City last season that likely played a key role to influencing Arteta to make the move.

Relentless Effort

Yet having drawn comments that he was carrying a few too many pounds after missing most of pre-season in Portugal, Arsenal’s considerably trimmer striker chased down every ball as if his future was at stake. Giménez was fooled into conceding a yellow card 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 converting Bukayo Saka’s cross and it wasn’t until after the break that the Swede had his initial opportunity.

A sumptuous flick from Martinelli provided a golden opportunity, only for Jan Oblak to quickly smother an weak effort towards goal. At that stage it must have felt like the opening goal would not arrive. But the dam burst when Gabriel nodded in Rice’s free-kick and Gyökeres was perfectly positioned to benefit as the masked striker left his imprint. “With any luck this is the beginning of a great run,” said a delighted Arteta.