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If Viktor Gyökeres goes on to become the forward that each Arsenal followers have been wishing for, then possibly they will recall this night as the juncture his luck shifted. According to the classic forward’s saying, it doesn’t matter 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 summer, a tremendous feeling of ease washed over the Emirates Stadium when Gyökeres tapped in from close range via a deflection off David Hancko during a pulsating second half when Mikel Arteta’s side proved yet again that they mean business this season.

Remarkable Shift in Form

Less than three minutes later and to the joy of the local supporters, his face-covering routine modeled after the character Bane in Batman, whose famous line is “attention came only with the disguise,” was given another airing after kneeing in from Gabriel Magalhães’s header following a Declan Rice corner to finish the demolition against Atlético Madrid. From the technical area, Arteta raised his fists and signaled enthusiastically in the direction of his recent signing, of whom he has spent the previous 14 days insisting the finest displays lay ahead.

“This is football, and we shouldn’t anticipate a player to move leagues and have him perform identically right away,” the Arsenal manager remarked in a conversation with the Spanish newspaper Marca before this game. “Circumstances vary greatly. Each athlete anywhere need one thing: their psychological state to be at its optimum. I informed Viktor in our first meeting that the center forward I desired at Arsenal was someone who could stay resilient when they experienced a dry spell without scoring. If not, you’re not suited at this tier. That’s why I have a great belief in him.”

Formative Hurdles

Back in his early teens playing for IFK Aspudden-Tellus, who are based in Stockholm’s outskirts, that Gyökeres first realised he would have to develop a thick skin to succeed in his selected career. Criticised after a subpar outing by a coach who said he lacked the mindset to make it in professional play, he was eventually transformed from a flank attacker into a striker after moving to Brommapojkarna two years later. “That one stuck with me and I recall it now,” he said recently.

Testing Period

Without a goal 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 beaten by Kosovo and Switzerland in World Cup qualifiers in the previous 14 days, with one newspaper describing his performance against the latter as “absent.”

He recorded an incredible 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 all‑round play has added a new layer in the final third, even if the chances have not fallen his way.

Game Analysis

This was plainly visible during the first half of this top-level clash between two teams that had initially seemed well-balanced. There was a impression that Gyökeres was pressing too much to stand out as he charged around like a disruptive presence during the beginning phase. An Eberechi Eze shot that bounced on to the bar inside the first few moments was originated from some sharp footwork on the edge of the Atlético area that niftily took him away from his defender, José María Giménez.

Giménez has the air of a man who could start a fight in an empty bar but is highly seasoned at this stage 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 probably significantly contributed to convincing Arteta to make the move.

Relentless Effort

However having drawn comments that he was carrying a few too many pounds after being absent for preparations in Portugal, Arsenal’s much more svelte-looking striker harried all opponents as if his life depended on it. Giménez was fooled into conceding a booking when Gyökeres collided with him on the edge of the Atlético area having simply held his position. Gabriel Martinelli saw his attempt canceled for offside after finishing Bukayo Saka’s cross and it did not happen until later that the Swede had his first sight of goal.

A sumptuous flick from Martinelli created an ideal chance, only for Jan Oblak to promptly save an unconvincing toe-poke towards goal. At that point it must have felt like the first score would never come. But the dam burst when Gabriel scored with a header Rice’s free-kick and Gyökeres was able to take full advantage as the man in the mask made his mark. “Hopefully this is the beginning of a great run,” said a delighted Arteta.