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Should Viktor Gyökeres develops into the forward that each Arsenal fans have been praying for, then maybe they will reflect on this night as the juncture his destiny changed. According to the classic forward’s saying, it makes no difference how they go in.

On the back of nine matches for Arsenal and Sweden without a goal and expectations rising on the man signed for £64m in the offseason, a tremendous feeling of ease swept over the Emirates Stadium when Gyökeres tapped in from near distance via a glance 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 Luck

Shortly after and to the excitement of the stadium crowd, his mask celebration borrowed from the villain Bane in Batman, whose famous line is “attention came only with the disguise,” was repeated once more after kneeing in from Gabriel Magalhães’s header following a Declan Rice corner to finish the demolition against Atlético Madrid. On the sidelines, Arteta punched the air and gestured animatedly in the direction of his star striker, of whom he has spent the last fortnight insisting the peak performance awaited.

“This is football, and we can’t expect a player to change contexts and have him replicate his form immediately,” the Arsenal manager stated in a discussion with the Spanish newspaper Marca prior to the match. “Things are very different. Each athlete anywhere need one thing: their state of mind to be at its best. I advised Viktor in our introductory chat that the center forward I sought for Arsenal was someone who could remain strong psychologically when they experienced a dry spell without scoring. Otherwise, you’re not suited at this level. That’s why I have a great belief in him.”

Youthful Struggles

When he was just 14 playing for IFK Aspudden-Tellus, who are situated in Stockholm’s outskirts, that Gyökeres first understood he would have to develop a thick skin to thrive in his selected career. Criticised after a disappointing display by a coach who said he lacked the mindset to succeed in professional play, he was eventually transformed from a flank attacker into a striker after signing for Brommapojkarna two years later. “That one stuck with me and I still remember it today,” he said in a recent interview.

Challenging Spell

Goal-shy since the victory against Nottingham Forest in London back on 13 September, this has been one of the most testing periods of his time in football. Gyökeres was heavily criticised after Sweden were overcome by Kosovo and Switzerland in World Cup qualifiers in the last two weeks, with one newspaper describing his performance against the latter as “unnoticeable.”

He achieved an astounding 54 goals in 52 appearances throughout the season for Sporting last season, so the difficulty is obviously not his scoring ability. As the manager has often noted, his complete game has given Arsenal an extra dimension in attack, even if the opportunities have not come to him.

Key Moments

This was certainly in evidence during the initial 45 minutes of this top-level clash between two teams that had originally looked well-balanced. There was a feeling that Gyökeres was trying too hard to impress as he charged around like a disruptive presence during the early stages. An Eberechi Eze shot that deflected on to the bar inside the first few moments was set up by some clever dribbling on the edge of the Atlético area that skillfully evaded from his opponent, José María Giménez.

Giménez has the reputation of a man who could create tension effortlessly 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 likely played a key role to influencing Arteta to make the move.

Relentless Effort

However having drawn comments that he was overweight after missing most of pre-season in Portugal, Arsenal’s noticeably leaner striker chased down every ball as if his future was at stake. Giménez was drawn into conceding a caution when Gyökeres ran into him on the edge of the Atlético area having only been stationary. Gabriel Martinelli saw his goal ruled out for offside after finishing Bukayo Saka’s cross and it did not happen until later that the Swede had his initial opportunity.

A brilliant pass from Martinelli provided a golden opportunity, 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 not arrive. But the dam burst when Gabriel scored with a header Rice’s free-kick and Gyökeres was able to take full advantage as the forward with the disguise made his mark. “With any luck this is the beginning of a great run,” said a delighted Arteta.