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Should Viktor Gyökeres goes on to become the forward that all Arsenal fans have been praying for, then possibly they will recall this night as the juncture his luck changed. According to the classic forward’s saying, it doesn’t matter how they hit the back of the net.

Following a streak of nine matches for club and country without a goal and expectations rising on the man signed for £64m in the summer, a huge wave of relief washed over the Emirates Stadium when Gyökeres scuffed home from point-blank via a ricochet off David Hancko during a thrilling second half when Mikel Arteta’s side demonstrated once more that they are serious contenders this season.

Dramatic Turnaround in Fortune

Less than three minutes later and to the excitement of the stadium crowd, his Bane-inspired gesture modeled after the character Bane in Batman, whose catchphrase is “attention came only with the disguise,” was repeated once more after bundling over from Gabriel Magalhães’s header following a Declan Rice corner to seal the victory against Atlético Madrid. On the sidelines, Arteta raised his fists and gestured animatedly in the direction of his new centre forward, of whom he has spent the last fortnight insisting the finest displays lay ahead.

“Such is soccer, and we shouldn’t anticipate a player to move leagues and have him perform identically right away,” the Arsenal manager stated in a discussion with the Spanish newspaper Marca before this game. “Situations are not the same. Each athlete anywhere need one thing: their mental condition to be at its optimum. I advised Viktor in our first meeting that the No 9 I desired at Arsenal was someone who could remain strong psychologically when they went six or eight games without scoring. Otherwise, you’re not suited at this tier. That’s why I have a lot of faith 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 toughen up to thrive in his vocation. Admonished after a poor performance by a coach who said he didn’t have the mentality to make it in elite soccer, he ultimately switched from a winger into a striker after joining Brommapojkarna two years later. “Those words lingered and I still remember it today,” he said not long ago.

Difficult Phase

Without a goal since the triumph over Nottingham Forest in London back on 13 September, this has been one of the toughest stretches of his professional life. Gyökeres was sharply rebuked after Sweden were overcome by Kosovo and Switzerland in World Cup qualifiers in the past fortnight, with one newspaper labeling his display against the latter as “unnoticeable.”

He achieved an incredible 54 goals in 52 appearances throughout the season for Sporting last season, so the issue is clearly not his goal conversion. As the manager has often noted, his overall contribution has given Arsenal an extra dimension in the final third, even if the opportunities have not fallen his way.

Key Moments

This was clearly apparent during the opening period of this elite matchup between two teams that had at first appeared well-balanced. There was a impression that Gyökeres was trying too hard to make an impact as he ran aggressively like a disruptive presence during the beginning phase. An Eberechi Eze shot that glanced on to the bar inside the opening five minutes was originated from some quick moves on the edge of the Atlético area that cleverly escaped from his opponent, José María Giménez.

Giménez has the air of a man who could provoke conflict anywhere but is vastly experienced at this standard 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.

Unyielding Drive

However having faced scrutiny that he was overweight after being absent for preparations in Portugal, Arsenal’s considerably trimmer striker pursued each opportunity as if his future was at stake. Giménez was tricked into conceding a caution 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 initial opportunity.

A sumptuous flick from Martinelli provided a golden opportunity, only for Jan Oblak to promptly save an weak effort towards goal. At that stage it must have seemed as if the breakthrough would not arrive. But the goals flowed when Gabriel scored with a header Rice’s free-kick and Gyökeres was ready to capitalize as the forward with the disguise left his imprint. “With any luck this is the commencement of a prolific period,” said a delighted Arteta.