Man in the Mask Gyökeres Stifles ‘Invisible’ Taunts to Make His Mark at Arsenal

If Viktor Gyökeres develops into the attacker that every Arsenal followers have been hoping for, then maybe they will recall this night as the juncture his destiny turned around. As the old striker’s mantra goes, it makes no difference how they hit the back of the net.

After a run of nine matches for Arsenal and Sweden without a goal and expectations rising on the man acquired for a hefty fee in the offseason, a massive sense of release washed over the Emirates Stadium when Gyökeres scuffed home from close range via a deflection off David Hancko during a pulsating second half when Mikel Arteta’s side proved yet again that they mean business this season.

Remarkable Shift in Fortune

Within moments and to the joy of the home faithful, his Bane-inspired gesture inspired by the antagonist Bane in Batman, whose catchphrase is “nobody cared until I put on 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 signaled enthusiastically in the direction of his star striker, of whom he has spent the previous 14 days insisting the best was yet to come.

“This is football, and we shouldn’t anticipate a player to switch environments and have him do the same thing instantly,” the Arsenal manager remarked in a conversation with the Spanish newspaper Marca ahead of the fixture. “Things are very different. Each athlete anywhere need one thing: their psychological state to be at its optimum. I advised Viktor in our initial discussion that the center forward I desired at Arsenal was someone who could hold up mentally when they went six or eight games without scoring. Failing that, you’re not good enough at this level. That’s why I have a great belief in him.”

Formative Hurdles

It was as a 14-year-old playing for IFK Aspudden-Tellus, who are situated in Stockholm’s southside districts, that Gyökeres first understood he would have to develop a thick skin to make it in his selected career. Rebuked after a disappointing display by a coach who said he was not mentally equipped to excel in top-level football, he ultimately switched from a winger into a striker after signing for Brommapojkarna two years later. “That comment resonated and I think about it often,” he said recently.

Challenging Spell

Having failed to score 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 heavily criticised after Sweden were defeated by Kosovo and Switzerland in World Cup qualifiers in the past fortnight, with one newspaper labeling his display against the latter as “unnoticeable.”

He managed an incredible 54 goals in 52 appearances in all tournaments for Sporting last season, so the problem is evidently not his finishing. As Arteta has frequently pointed out, his overall contribution has provided additional depth in the final third, even if the openings have not been in his favor.

Key Moments

This was clearly apparent during the first half of this high‑quality encounter between two teams that had initially seemed well-balanced. There was a impression that Gyökeres was overexerting himself to make an impact as he charged around like a disruptive presence during the beginning phase. An Eberechi Eze shot that glanced on to the bar inside the opening five minutes was created by some clever dribbling on the edge of the Atlético area that skillfully evaded from his defender, José María Giménez.

The Uruguayan has the air of a man who could create tension effortlessly but is highly seasoned at this standard 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 convincing Arteta to secure the signing.

Constant Hustle

Nevertheless having faced scrutiny that he was out of shape after sitting out the buildup in Portugal, Arsenal’s much more svelte-looking striker harried all opponents as if his future was at stake. Giménez was fooled into conceding a yellow card when Gyökeres ran into him on the edge of the Atlético area having merely stood his ground. Gabriel Martinelli saw his goal ruled out for offside after converting Bukayo Saka’s cross and it wasn’t until after the break that the Swede had his initial opportunity.

A exquisite touch from Martinelli created an ideal chance, only for Jan Oblak to quickly smother an hesitant shot towards goal. At that point it must have appeared that 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 left his imprint. “Ideally this is the start of some beautiful sequences,” said a delighted Arteta.