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If Viktor Gyökeres develops into the attacker that each Arsenal supporters have been wishing for, then perhaps they will reflect on this night as the point his fortune changed. According to the classic forward’s saying, it isn’t important how they find the net.

On the back of nine matches for club and country without a goal and pressure mounting on the man signed for £64m in the summer, 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 showed again that they are here to compete this season.

Stunning Reversal in Form

Less than three minutes later and to the delight of the stadium crowd, his Bane-inspired gesture borrowed from the antagonist Bane in Batman, whose catchphrase is “nobody cared until I put on the mask,” was repeated once more after kneeing in from Gabriel Magalhães’s header following a Declan Rice corner to seal the victory against Atlético Madrid. On the sidelines, Arteta celebrated wildly and signaled enthusiastically in the direction of his new centre forward, of whom he has spent the last fortnight insisting the best was yet to come.

“This is football, and we can’t expect a player to switch environments and have him do the same thing instantly,” the Arsenal manager remarked in a conversation with the Spanish newspaper Marca before this game. “Things are very different. Each athlete anywhere need one thing: their mental condition to be at its best. I informed Viktor in our initial discussion that the No 9 I wanted for Arsenal was someone who could hold up mentally when they experienced a dry spell without scoring. Failing that, you’re not good enough at this standard. That’s why I have a great belief in him.”

Formative Hurdles

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 toughen up to make it in his vocation. Criticised after a subpar outing by a coach who said he didn’t have the mentality to excel in elite soccer, he ended up being converted from a winger into a striker after joining Brommapojkarna two years later. “Those words lingered and I recall it now,” he said not long ago.

Difficult Phase

Having failed to score since the triumph over Nottingham Forest at home back on 13 September, this has been one of the hardest times of his time in football. Gyökeres was heavily criticised after Sweden were defeated by Kosovo and Switzerland in World Cup qualifiers in the past fortnight, with one newspaper describing his performance against the latter as “unnoticeable.”

He managed an astounding 54 goals in 52 appearances across all competitions for Sporting last season, so the difficulty is clearly not his finishing. In line with the coach’s repeated comments, his overall contribution has provided additional depth in the final third, even if the chances have not been in his favor.

Match Highlights

This was plainly visible during the initial 45 minutes of this elite matchup between two teams that had at first appeared evenly matched. There was a impression that Gyökeres was overexerting himself to stand out as he charged around like a bull in a china shop during the opening minutes. An Eberechi Eze shot that deflected on to the bar inside the initial stages was set up by some clever dribbling on the edge of the Atlético area that niftily took him away from his opponent, José María Giménez.

The defender has the air of a man who could provoke conflict anywhere but is deeply knowledgeable at this level 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 convincing Arteta to make the move.

Constant Hustle

Nevertheless having faced scrutiny that he was overweight after missing most of pre-season in Portugal, Arsenal’s noticeably leaner striker pursued each opportunity as if his career hung in the balance. Giménez was drawn into conceding a booking when Gyökeres ran into him on the edge of the Atlético area having only been stationary. Gabriel Martinelli saw his effort disallowed for offside after finishing Bukayo Saka’s cross and it only came in the second half that the Swede had his first sight of goal.

A exquisite touch from Martinelli created an ideal chance, only for Jan Oblak to swiftly block an weak effort towards goal. Then it must have appeared that the breakthrough would never come. But the goals flowed when Gabriel headed home Rice’s free-kick and Gyökeres was ready to capitalize as the man in the mask left his imprint. “Hopefully this is the start of some beautiful sequences,” said a delighted Arteta.