🔗 Share this article

In the event that Viktor Gyökeres develops into the striker that all Arsenal followers have been praying for, then maybe they will look back on this night as the moment his fortune changed. In keeping with the timeless attacker’s creed, it doesn’t matter how they find the net.

After a run of nine matches for club and country without a goal and expectations rising on the man acquired for a hefty fee in the offseason, a huge wave of relief swept over the Emirates Stadium when Gyökeres scuffed home from near distance via a deflection off David Hancko during a pulsating second half when Mikel Arteta’s side demonstrated once more that they mean business this season.

Stunning Reversal in Luck

Less than three minutes later and to the delight of the stadium crowd, his face-covering routine modeled after the antagonist Bane in Batman, whose signature quote is “nobody cared until I put on the mask,” was repeated once more 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 signaled enthusiastically in the direction of his star striker, of whom he has spent the last fortnight insisting the best was yet to come.

“Such is soccer, and we shouldn’t anticipate a player to change contexts and have him perform identically right away,” 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 psychological state to be at its optimum. I informed Viktor in our first meeting that the striker I desired at Arsenal was someone who could remain strong psychologically when they experienced a dry spell without scoring. Otherwise, you’re not good enough at this tier. That’s why I have a strong confidence in him.”

Youthful Struggles

It was as a 14-year-old playing for IFK Aspudden-Tellus, who are located in Stockholm’s southern suburbs, that Gyökeres first understood he would have to build resilience to make it in his selected career. Admonished after a subpar outing by a coach who said he was not mentally equipped to succeed in professional play, he ended up being converted from a winger 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.

Challenging Spell

Without a goal since the win over Nottingham Forest at home 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 past fortnight, with one newspaper labeling his display against the latter as “absent.”

He recorded an astounding 54 goals in 52 appearances in all tournaments for Sporting last season, so the issue is evidently not his finishing. As the manager has often noted, his all‑round play has added a new layer in attack, even if the opportunities have not come to him.

Match Highlights

This was certainly in evidence during the first half of this top-level clash between two teams that had initially seemed well-balanced. There was a sense that Gyökeres was pressing too much to make an impact as he bustled about like a bull in a china shop during the beginning phase. 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 opponent, José María Giménez.

The defender has the air of a man who could create tension effortlessly but is highly seasoned 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 likely played a key role to convincing Arteta to secure the signing.

Constant Hustle

Nevertheless having drawn comments that he was out of shape after sitting out the buildup in Portugal, Arsenal’s considerably trimmer striker pursued each opportunity as if his future was at stake. Giménez was drawn into conceding a caution when Gyökeres made contact on the edge of the Atlético area having simply held his position. Gabriel Martinelli saw his attempt canceled 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 brilliant pass from Martinelli provided a golden opportunity, only for Jan Oblak to swiftly block an weak effort towards goal. Then it must have appeared that the breakthrough would not arrive. But the goals flowed when Gabriel headed home Rice’s free-kick and Gyökeres was perfectly positioned to benefit as the forward with the disguise left his imprint. “Hopefully this is the start of some beautiful sequences,” said a delighted Arteta.