Arsenal have finally figured Viktor Gyökeres out

Arsenal spent a fortune for him to be the prolific goalscorer long missing from Mikel Arteta's grand design, but Viktor Gyökeres has become something different for this season's UEFA Champions League finalists.

It's something the Gunners have finally figured out, based on how they played off an irrepressible Gyökeres during the 1-0 semi-final second leg win over Atletico Madrid. Learning how to play to Gyökeres' strengths has been an arduous process, but there have been signs Arsenal are getting it right at the ideal time before facing Paris Saint-Germain for the trophy in Budapest on Saturday, May 30.

Getting the ball to Gyökeres in a hurry, via two or three passes at the most, has helped. So has producing the right delivery from the right areas. Cue the return of Bukayo Saka, whose wing wizardry has meshed brilliantly with the industry of Gyökeres.

The partnership between Gyökeres and Saka gives the 2026 vintage of Arsenal a partnership akin to the Robin van Persie and Theo Walcott double act, circa 2010-12. While Gyökeres shares some of the same goal-hanger's instincts as RVP, he's nowhere close to being as refined a finisher.

Fortunately, Gyökeres has provided Arsenal with qualities Van Persie never could.

Viktor Gyökeres is the bully Arsenal have needed up top

Arsenal haven't had a physically aggressive talisman up top for too long. Olivier Giroud could qualify on some days, but the Frenchman who got more out of his career and talent level than just about any player you care to mention, was often defined more by flair than fire and brimstone.

Gyökeres is something different. Even though he has Giroud's frustrating knack for missing chances a natural finisher would convert blindfolded. See this miss against Atleti when Arsenal's No. 14 should've made the final stages of the match a nerve-free zone.

He can't always be trusted in front of goal, but Gyökeres is increasingly earning Arteta's faith as a battering ram who will carry the fight to the opposition. It's what the Swede did for 95-ish minutes of tireless running, terrier-like scrapping and old-school craft against Atletico.

Gyökeres gave Atleti centre-back Robin Le Normand a pummeling. The Arsenal frontman backed in, shoved and pushed for leverage and spun his defender to draw numerous fouls and free-kicks.

If Le Normand thought he had a rough outing before being substituted on 57 minutes, the Frenchman can compare battle scars with Atletico right-back Marc Pubill. The latter became Gyökeres' favourite victim during the second half.

Gyökeres loves to pull into the inside left channel and he plastered himself onto to Pubill for winnable aerial duels. Arsenal took full advantage by launching more and more long balls toward Gyökeres.

The direct approach is an element of play perfect for winning the wars of attrition common in Europe's premier cup competition. It's not the most eye-catching nor exciting route to goal, but Gyökeres is the perfect focal point for the boring football Arsenal need to win in Europe.

He's doing the unfanshionable, but unfortunately highly necessary stuff to help the Gunners wade through the overly tactical minutiae the Champions League serves up too often. Yet, it hasn't all been dull and dirty work from Gyökeres.

He's also showing off a subtle range of movement. Gyökeres tormented Atleti with contolled lateral runs across the faces of defenders, runs he turned vertical at the crucial moment to put him behind the defence. There is even some Giroud-esque finesse about the quick and neat touches Gyökeres is using to connect with Saka and Co.

For years the Gunners were outworked and punished by similar clever and rough-and-ready bullies up top. Think back to when Diego Simeone's 2018 Atletico team used familiar foe Diego Costa to end Arsene Wenger's final fruitless quest for European silverware.

A lot of other teams who won UEFA trophies while Arsenal fumed relied on a brutish target man to unsettle defenders and provide an instant outlet to transition from defence to attack. Didier Drogba helped make Chelsea perennial contenders on the continent, in between tormenting Arsenal domestically.

Today's Gunners finally have their own muscular menace in attack. Gyökeres' combination of sly movement and willingness to play with his back to goal and rough up defenders in the air makes him the ideal striker for the rearguard action Arsenal will need to upset free-flowing reigning champions PSG.

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