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If Viktor Gyökeres goes on to become the forward that all Arsenal followers have been praying for, then possibly they will look back on this night as the moment his luck changed. According to the classic forward’s saying, it isn’t important how they find the net.

Following a streak of nine matches for Arsenal and Sweden without a goal and expectations rising on the man signed for £64m in the offseason, a huge wave of relief swept over the Emirates Stadium when Gyökeres tapped in from near distance via a ricochet off David Hancko during a thrilling second half when Mikel Arteta’s side proved yet again that they are serious contenders this season.

Stunning Reversal in Luck

Less than three minutes later and to the excitement of the stadium crowd, his Bane-inspired gesture modeled after the villain Bane in Batman, whose signature quote is “I was ignored before the mask,” was repeated once more after bundling over from Gabriel Magalhães’s header following a Declan Rice corner to finish the demolition against Atlético Madrid. From the technical area, Arteta celebrated wildly and gestured animatedly in the direction of his recent signing, of whom he has spent the last fortnight insisting the peak performance awaited.

“That’s the game, and we must not assume a player to change contexts and have him do the same thing instantly,” the Arsenal manager remarked in a conversation with the Spanish newspaper Marca before this game. “Situations are not the same. All players in the world need one thing: their state of mind to be at its optimum. I advised Viktor in our first meeting that the No 9 I wanted for Arsenal was someone who could remain strong psychologically when they faced a goal drought without scoring. Failing that, you’re not good enough at this standard. That’s why I have a great belief in him.”

Youthful Struggles

It was as a 14-year-old playing for IFK Aspudden-Tellus, who are situated in Stockholm’s southern suburbs, that Gyökeres first recognized he would have to develop a thick skin to thrive in his selected career. Admonished after a poor performance by a coach who said he was not mentally equipped to make it in elite soccer, he was eventually transformed from a wide player into a striker after signing for Brommapojkarna two years later. “That one stuck with me and I recall it now,” he said in a recent interview.

Difficult Phase

Goal-shy since the victory against Nottingham Forest here back on 13 September, this has been one of the most testing periods of his career. Gyökeres was heavily criticised after Sweden were defeated by Kosovo and Switzerland in World Cup qualifiers in the last two weeks, with one newspaper labeling his display against the latter as “invisible.”

He achieved an incredible 54 goals in 52 appearances throughout the season for Sporting last season, so the problem is evidently not his scoring ability. As Arteta has frequently pointed out, his all‑round play has given Arsenal an extra dimension in the final third, even if the opportunities have not been in his favor.

Game Analysis

This was certainly in evidence during the initial 45 minutes of this elite matchup between two teams that had at first appeared evenly matched. There was a feeling that Gyökeres was overexerting himself to stand out as he ran aggressively like a force of nature during the opening minutes. An Eberechi Eze shot that bounced on to the bar inside the opening five minutes was originated from some clever dribbling on the edge of the Atlético area that cleverly escaped from his opponent, José María Giménez.

The Uruguayan has the reputation of a man who could provoke conflict anywhere but is highly seasoned at this stage compared with Gyökeres, who is playing in only his second Champions League campaign after netting three goals for Sporting against Manchester City last season that must have gone a long way to convincing Arteta to make the move.

Relentless Effort

Yet having faced scrutiny that he was out of shape after being absent for preparations in Portugal, Arsenal’s much more svelte-looking striker chased down every ball as if his future was at stake. Giménez was tricked into conceding a yellow card when Gyökeres ran into him on the edge of the Atlético area having merely stood his ground. 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 opening chance.

A exquisite touch from Martinelli created an ideal chance, only for Jan Oblak to promptly save an hesitant shot towards goal. At that stage it must have seemed as if the first score would elude him. But the dam burst when Gabriel nodded in Rice’s free-kick and Gyökeres was ready to capitalize as the man in the mask made his mark. “With any luck this is the commencement of a prolific period,” said a delighted Arteta.