🔗 Share this article Man in the Mask Gyökeres Silences Jibes to Make His Mark at the Gunners In the event that Viktor Gyökeres develops into the striker that each Arsenal fans have been wishing for, then possibly they will reflect on this night as the moment his luck turned around. In keeping with the timeless attacker’s creed, it makes no difference how they find the net. On the back of nine matches for his team and national side without a goal and scrutiny increasing on the man signed for £64m in the summer, a massive sense of release swept over the Emirates Stadium when Gyökeres scuffed home from close range via a glance off David Hancko during a thrilling second half when Mikel Arteta’s side showed again that they mean business this season. Dramatic Turnaround in Fortune Shortly after and to the excitement of the stadium crowd, his mask celebration modeled after the villain Bane in Batman, whose famous line is “nobody cared until I put on the mask,” was repeated once more after kneeing in 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. “This is football, and we must not assume a player to move leagues and have him do the same thing instantly,” the Arsenal manager stated in a discussion with the Spanish newspaper Marca prior to the match. “Things are very different. 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 desired at Arsenal was someone who could remain strong psychologically when they went six or eight games without scoring. Failing that, you’re not suited at this tier. 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 located in Stockholm’s southside districts, that Gyökeres first recognized he would have to toughen up to make it in his vocation. Admonished after a disappointing display by a coach who said he didn’t have the mentality to excel in professional play, he ended up being converted from a winger into a striker after joining Brommapojkarna two years later. “That comment resonated and I still remember it today,” he said not long ago. Challenging Spell Having failed to score since the win over Nottingham Forest here back on 13 September, this has been one of the toughest stretches of his professional life. Gyökeres was heavily criticised after Sweden were defeated by Kosovo and Switzerland in World Cup qualifiers in the past fortnight, with one newspaper describing his performance against the latter as “invisible.” He achieved an astounding 54 goals in 52 appearances in all tournaments for Sporting last season, so the problem is evidently not his goal conversion. As Arteta has frequently pointed out, his complete game has added a new layer in offense, even if the opportunities have not fallen his way. Match Highlights This was clearly apparent during the initial 45 minutes of this elite matchup between two teams that had initially seemed closely contested. There was a impression that Gyökeres was pressing too much to stand out as he bustled about like a disruptive presence during the early stages. An Eberechi Eze shot that bounced on to the bar inside the first few moments was set up by some sharp footwork on the edge of the Atlético area that skillfully evaded from his opponent, José María Giménez. The Uruguayan has the aura of a man who could provoke conflict anywhere but is deeply knowledgeable at this standard compared with Gyökeres, who is participating in just 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 make the move. Unyielding Drive Yet having faced scrutiny that he was overweight after sitting out the buildup in Portugal, Arsenal’s considerably trimmer striker harried all opponents as if his career hung in the balance. Giménez was fooled into conceding a yellow card when Gyökeres made contact on the edge of the Atlético area having only been stationary. Gabriel Martinelli saw his effort disallowed for offside after tapping in Bukayo Saka’s cross and it wasn’t until after the break that the Swede had his opening chance. A exquisite touch from Martinelli provided a golden opportunity, only for Jan Oblak to promptly save an weak effort towards goal. At that point it must have felt like the opening goal would never come. But the floodgates opened when Gabriel headed home Rice’s free-kick and Gyökeres was ready to capitalize as the forward with the disguise made his mark. “Ideally this is the commencement of a prolific period,” said a delighted Arteta.