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If Viktor Gyökeres develops into the forward that every Arsenal followers have been hoping for, then maybe they will look back on this night as the juncture his luck turned around. In keeping with the timeless attacker’s creed, it doesn’t matter how they find the net.

On the back of nine matches for his team and national side without a goal and expectations rising on the man acquired for a hefty fee in the offseason, a tremendous feeling of ease washed over the Emirates Stadium when Gyökeres tapped in from close range via a ricochet off David Hancko during a pulsating second half when Mikel Arteta’s side showed again that they mean business this season.

Dramatic Turnaround in Fortune

Within moments and to the delight of the local supporters, his face-covering routine modeled after the antagonist Bane in Batman, whose famous line is “I was ignored before the mask,” was given another airing 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 raised his fists and motioned emphatically 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 must not assume a player to move leagues and have him perform identically right away,” the Arsenal manager said in an interview with the Spanish newspaper Marca before this game. “Situations are not the same. Every footballer globally need one thing: their mental condition to be at its optimum. I told Viktor in our initial discussion that the center forward I wanted for Arsenal was someone who could hold up mentally when they experienced a dry spell without scoring. If not, you’re not good enough at this tier. That’s why I have a strong confidence in him.”

Formative Hurdles

Back in his early teens playing for IFK Aspudden-Tellus, who are situated in Stockholm’s outskirts, that Gyökeres first realised he would have to build resilience to succeed in his selected career. Criticised after a disappointing display by a coach who said he didn’t have the mentality to excel in elite soccer, he was eventually transformed from a winger into a striker after moving to Brommapojkarna two years later. “That comment resonated and I think about it often,” 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 toughest stretches of his career. Gyökeres was widely panned after Sweden were defeated by Kosovo and Switzerland in World Cup qualifiers in the previous 14 days, with one newspaper labeling his display against the latter as “absent.”

He recorded an astounding 54 goals in 52 appearances across all competitions for Sporting last season, so the issue is clearly not his scoring ability. As the manager has often noted, his overall contribution has provided additional depth in offense, even if the chances have not come to him.

Key Moments

This was plainly visible during the first half of this high‑quality encounter between two teams that had at first appeared evenly matched. There was a feeling that Gyökeres was trying too hard to stand out as he charged around like a bull in a china shop during the beginning phase. An Eberechi Eze shot that deflected on to the bar inside the initial stages was set up by some sharp footwork on the edge of the Atlético area that niftily took him away from his marker, José María Giménez.

The Uruguayan has the aura of a man who could provoke conflict anywhere but is deeply knowledgeable at this level compared with Gyökeres, who is competing in merely his second Champions League campaign after scoring a hat-trick for Sporting against Manchester City last season that must have gone a long way to convincing Arteta to take the plunge.

Constant Hustle

However having faced scrutiny that he was overweight after sitting out the buildup in Portugal, Arsenal’s noticeably leaner striker harried all opponents as if his career hung in the balance. Giménez was drawn into conceding a caution when Gyökeres ran into him on the edge of the Atlético area having simply held his position. Gabriel Martinelli saw his goal ruled out for offside after tapping in 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 hesitant shot towards goal. At that point it must have seemed as if the first score would elude him. But the goals flowed when Gabriel nodded in Rice’s free-kick and Gyökeres was ready to capitalize as the masked striker announced his presence. “Ideally this is the beginning of a great run,” said a delighted Arteta.