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

If Viktor Gyökeres develops into the forward that each Arsenal fans have been wishing for, then maybe they will recall this night as the juncture his destiny shifted. In keeping with the timeless attacker’s creed, it doesn’t matter 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 offseason, a tremendous feeling of ease washed over the Emirates Stadium when Gyökeres guided in from near distance via a deflection off David Hancko during a electrifying second half when Mikel Arteta’s side proved yet again that they mean business this season.

Stunning Reversal in Form

Within moments and to the joy of the home faithful, his Bane-inspired gesture borrowed from the antagonist Bane in Batman, whose catchphrase is “nobody cared until I put on the mask,” was showcased again after forcing home from Gabriel Magalhães’s header following a Declan Rice corner to complete the rout against Atlético Madrid. From the technical area, Arteta celebrated wildly and motioned emphatically in the direction of his recent signing, of whom he has spent the last fortnight insisting the finest displays lay ahead.

“Such is soccer, and we shouldn’t anticipate a player to switch environments and have him replicate his form immediately,” the Arsenal manager said in an interview with the Spanish newspaper Marca prior to the match. “Things are very different. All players in the world need one thing: their mental condition to be at its peak. I told Viktor in our first meeting that the striker I desired at Arsenal was someone who could hold up mentally when they went six or eight games without scoring. Otherwise, you’re not cut out at this standard. That’s why I have a strong confidence in him.”

Early Challenges

It was as a 14-year-old playing for IFK Aspudden-Tellus, who are situated in Stockholm’s outskirts, that Gyökeres first realised he would have to develop a thick skin to make it in his vocation. Criticised after a subpar outing by a coach who said he didn’t have the mentality to succeed in professional play, he ended up being converted from a wide player into a striker after joining Brommapojkarna two years later. “That one stuck with me and I recall it now,” he said recently.

Difficult Phase

Having failed to score since the victory against Nottingham Forest at home back on 13 September, this has been one of the toughest stretches of his professional life. Gyökeres was heavily criticised after Sweden were beaten by Kosovo and Switzerland in World Cup qualifiers in the previous 14 days, with one newspaper describing his performance against the latter as “invisible.”

He achieved an incredible 54 goals in 52 appearances across all competitions for Sporting last season, so the difficulty is obviously not his finishing. In line with the coach’s repeated comments, his complete game has provided additional depth in attack, even if the opportunities have not fallen his way.

Key Moments

This was certainly in evidence during the initial 45 minutes of this elite matchup between two teams that had originally looked evenly matched. There was a feeling that Gyökeres was overexerting himself to impress as he charged around like a bull in a china shop during the early stages. An Eberechi Eze shot that deflected on to the bar inside the opening five minutes was created by some clever dribbling on the edge of the Atlético area that niftily took him away from his opponent, José María Giménez.

Giménez has the air of a man who could create tension effortlessly but is vastly experienced at this standard compared with Gyökeres, who is playing in only his second Champions League campaign after netting three goals for Sporting against Manchester City last season that likely played a key role to convincing Arteta to make the move.

Relentless Effort

However having faced scrutiny that he was overweight after sitting out the buildup in Portugal, Arsenal’s noticeably leaner striker chased down every ball as if his future was at stake. Giménez was drawn into conceding a yellow card when Gyökeres collided with him on the edge of the Atlético area having simply held his position. Gabriel Martinelli saw his effort disallowed for offside after converting Bukayo Saka’s cross and it did not happen until later that the Swede had his first sight of goal.

A brilliant pass from Martinelli set Gyökeres up perfectly, only for Jan Oblak to quickly smother an weak effort towards goal. Then it must have felt like the first score would not arrive. But the dam burst when Gabriel headed home Rice’s free-kick and Gyökeres was ready to capitalize as the forward with the disguise announced his presence. “With any luck this is the commencement of a prolific period,” said a delighted Arteta.