Masked Man Gyökeres Stifles ‘Invisible’ Taunts to Leave an Impression at Arsenal

If Viktor Gyökeres develops into the attacker that each Arsenal fans have been hoping for, then maybe they will recall this night as the moment his fortune changed. As the old striker’s mantra goes, it isn’t important how they hit the back of the net.

On the back of nine matches for club and country without a goal and scrutiny increasing on the man signed for £64m in the summer, a massive sense of release washed over the Emirates Stadium when Gyökeres tapped in from point-blank via a ricochet off David Hancko during a thrilling second half when Mikel Arteta’s side showed again that they are here to compete this season.

Remarkable Shift in Luck

Less than three minutes later and to the delight of the home faithful, his mask celebration modeled after the villain Bane in Batman, whose signature quote is “nobody cared until I put on the mask,” was showcased again after bundling over 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 signaled enthusiastically in the direction of his new centre forward, of whom he has spent the past two weeks insisting the best was yet to come.

“Such is soccer, and we can’t expect 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 ahead of the fixture. “Things are very different. Every footballer globally need one thing: their state of mind to be at its best. I told Viktor in our first meeting that the center forward I wanted for Arsenal was someone who could stay resilient when they faced a goal drought without scoring. Failing that, you’re not suited at this tier. That’s why I have a strong confidence in him.”

Formative Hurdles

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 develop a thick skin to thrive in his chosen profession. Admonished after a subpar outing by a coach who said he didn’t have the mentality to succeed in elite soccer, he was eventually transformed from a wide player into a striker after signing for Brommapojkarna two years later. “That one stuck with me and I think about it often,” he said in a recent interview.

Testing Period

Goal-shy since the win over Nottingham Forest here back on 13 September, this has been one of the hardest times of his professional life. Gyökeres was heavily criticised after Sweden were overcome by Kosovo and Switzerland in World Cup qualifiers in the last two weeks, with one newspaper characterizing his outing against the latter as “invisible.”

He recorded an astounding 54 goals in 52 appearances across all competitions for Sporting last season, so the issue is clearly not his scoring ability. As the manager has often noted, his complete game has provided additional depth in attack, even if the chances have not fallen his way.

Match Highlights

This was plainly visible during the initial 45 minutes of this top-level clash between two teams that had at first appeared evenly matched. There was a sense that Gyökeres was overexerting himself to impress as he bustled about like a bull in a china shop during the opening minutes. An Eberechi Eze shot that deflected on to the bar inside the opening five minutes was created by some sharp footwork on the edge of the Atlético area that cleverly escaped from his opponent, José María Giménez.

Giménez has the air of a man who could start a fight in an empty bar but is vastly experienced at this level compared with Gyökeres, who is competing in merely his second Champions League campaign after bagging a triple for Sporting against Manchester City last season that likely played a key role to convincing Arteta to make the move.

Relentless Effort

Nevertheless having drawn comments that he was carrying a few too many pounds after being absent for preparations in Portugal, Arsenal’s much more svelte-looking striker chased down every ball as if his future was at stake. Giménez was fooled into conceding a caution when Gyökeres ran into him on the edge of the Atlético area having merely stood his ground. Gabriel Martinelli saw his attempt canceled for offside after finishing Bukayo Saka’s cross and it only came in the second half that the Swede had his initial opportunity.

A sumptuous flick from Martinelli provided a golden opportunity, only for Jan Oblak to promptly save an weak effort towards goal. At that stage it must have felt like the breakthrough would never come. But the dam burst when Gabriel nodded in Rice’s free-kick and Gyökeres was perfectly positioned to benefit as the man in the mask left his imprint. “Ideally this is the commencement of a prolific period,” said a delighted Arteta.