Masked Man Gyökeres Quiets ‘Invisible’ Taunts to Make His Mark at Arsenal

If Viktor Gyökeres goes on to become the forward that each Arsenal followers have been hoping for, then maybe they will look back on this night as the point his fortune turned around. In keeping with the timeless attacker’s creed, it makes no difference how they go in.

Following a streak of nine matches for Arsenal and Sweden without a goal and expectations rising on the man signed for £64m in the close season, a huge wave of relief swept over the Emirates Stadium when Gyökeres tapped in from point-blank via a ricochet off David Hancko during a electrifying second half when Mikel Arteta’s side proved yet again that they are serious contenders this season.

Remarkable Shift in Luck

Shortly after and to the delight of the home faithful, his Bane-inspired gesture modeled after the character Bane in Batman, whose signature quote 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 celebrated wildly 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 must not assume a player to change contexts and have him do the same thing instantly,” the Arsenal manager said in an interview with the Spanish newspaper Marca before this game. “Circumstances vary greatly. Every footballer globally need one thing: their mental condition to be at its peak. I advised Viktor in our first meeting that the striker I wanted for Arsenal was someone who could stay resilient when they went six or eight games without scoring. Failing that, you’re not cut out 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 situated in Stockholm’s southern suburbs, that Gyökeres first understood he would have to develop a thick skin to succeed in his selected career. Admonished after a poor performance by a coach who said he was not mentally equipped to excel in elite soccer, he ultimately switched from a wide player into a striker after joining Brommapojkarna two years later. “Those words lingered and I think about it often,” he said in a recent interview.

Difficult Phase

Without a goal since the win over Nottingham Forest in London back on 13 September, this has been one of the toughest stretches of his professional life. Gyökeres was widely panned 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 recorded an remarkable 54 goals in 52 appearances throughout the season for Sporting last season, so the problem is obviously not his finishing. As Arteta has frequently pointed out, his all‑round play has given Arsenal an extra dimension in the final third, even if the opportunities have not come to him.

Match Highlights

This was clearly apparent during the initial 45 minutes of this elite matchup between two teams that had at first appeared closely contested. There was a feeling that Gyökeres was pressing too much to impress as he ran aggressively like a bull in a china shop during the early stages. An Eberechi Eze shot that glanced on to the bar inside the opening five minutes was created by some sharp footwork on the edge of the Atlético area that skillfully evaded from his opponent, José María Giménez.

Giménez has the air of a man who could start a fight in an empty bar but is highly seasoned 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 must have gone a long way to influencing Arteta to make the move.

Relentless Effort

Nevertheless having drawn comments that he was overweight after sitting out the buildup in Portugal, Arsenal’s considerably trimmer striker harried all opponents as if his future was at stake. Giménez was drawn into conceding a caution when Gyökeres collided with him on the edge of the Atlético area having merely stood his ground. Gabriel Martinelli saw his attempt canceled for offside after converting Bukayo Saka’s cross and it only came in the second half that the Swede had his first sight of goal.

A brilliant pass from Martinelli provided a golden opportunity, only for Jan Oblak to quickly smother an hesitant shot towards goal. At that point it must have felt like the breakthrough would never come. But the floodgates opened when Gabriel scored with a header Rice’s free-kick and Gyökeres was able to take full advantage as the man in the mask left his imprint. “Ideally this is the beginning of a great run,” said a delighted Arteta.