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Should Viktor Gyökeres transforms into the forward that each Arsenal fans have been wishing for, then perhaps they will recall this night as the juncture his destiny shifted. In keeping with the timeless attacker’s creed, it isn’t important how they hit the back of the net.

After a run of nine matches for Arsenal and Sweden without a goal and pressure mounting on the man signed for £64m in the close season, a massive sense of release swept over the Emirates Stadium when Gyökeres scuffed home from point-blank via a glance off David Hancko during a pulsating second half when Mikel Arteta’s side demonstrated once more that they mean business this season.

Remarkable Shift in Luck

Within moments and to the excitement of the local supporters, his Bane-inspired gesture modeled after the character Bane in Batman, whose signature quote is “I was ignored before the mask,” was showcased again after kneeing in from Gabriel Magalhães’s header following a Declan Rice corner to complete the rout against Atlético Madrid. Down on the touchline, Arteta celebrated wildly and gestured animatedly in the direction of his new centre forward, of whom he has spent the past two weeks insisting the best was yet to come.

“This is football, and we can’t expect a player to switch environments and have him do the same thing instantly,” the Arsenal manager said in an interview with the Spanish newspaper Marca prior to the match. “Situations are not the same. Each athlete anywhere need one thing: their psychological state to be at its best. I told Viktor in our initial discussion that the No 9 I wanted for Arsenal was someone who could stay resilient when they faced a goal drought without scoring. If not, you’re not cut out at this tier. That’s why I have a strong confidence in him.”

Youthful Struggles

Back in his early teens playing for IFK Aspudden-Tellus, who are located in Stockholm’s outskirts, that Gyökeres first understood he would have to build resilience to succeed in his vocation. Rebuked after a poor performance by a coach who said he lacked the mindset to excel in professional play, he was eventually transformed from a wide player into a striker after moving to Brommapojkarna two years later. “That comment resonated and I recall it now,” he said not long ago.

Testing Period

Goal-shy since the triumph over Nottingham Forest here back on 13 September, this has been one of the toughest stretches of his time in football. Gyökeres was sharply rebuked after Sweden were overcome by Kosovo and Switzerland in World Cup qualifiers in the past fortnight, with one newspaper describing his performance against the latter as “unnoticeable.”

He managed an remarkable 54 goals in 52 appearances throughout the season for Sporting last season, so the problem is evidently not his scoring ability. In line with the coach’s repeated comments, his overall contribution has given Arsenal an extra dimension in attack, even if the openings have not come to him.

Key Moments

This was certainly in evidence during the first half of this elite matchup between two teams that had initially seemed closely contested. There was a sense that Gyökeres was overexerting himself to impress as he ran aggressively like a force of nature during the beginning phase. An Eberechi Eze shot that bounced on to the bar inside the first few moments was originated from some clever dribbling on the edge of the Atlético area that cleverly escaped from his defender, José María Giménez.

The Uruguayan has the reputation of a man who could provoke conflict anywhere but is deeply knowledgeable at this stage compared with Gyökeres, who is playing in only his second Champions League campaign after scoring a hat-trick for Sporting against Manchester City last season that likely played a key role to influencing Arteta to take the plunge.

Constant Hustle

Yet having drawn comments that he was overweight after missing most of pre-season in Portugal, Arsenal’s considerably trimmer striker chased down every ball as if his life depended on it. Giménez was tricked into conceding a caution when Gyökeres collided with him on the edge of the Atlético area having only been stationary. Gabriel Martinelli saw his attempt canceled for offside after converting Bukayo Saka’s cross and it wasn’t until after the break that the Swede had his opening chance.

A sumptuous flick from Martinelli created an ideal chance, only for Jan Oblak to promptly save an unconvincing toe-poke towards goal. Then it must have felt like the breakthrough would elude him. But the dam burst when Gabriel nodded in Rice’s free-kick and Gyökeres was perfectly positioned to benefit as the forward with the disguise made his mark. “Hopefully this is the commencement of a prolific period,” said a delighted Arteta.