It’s been some week for Arsenal's Nicklas Bendtner. In just three days he’s gone from being a laughing stock – the arrogant lump who couldn’t hit a barn door against Burnley - to the Champions League hat-trick hero against Porto.
But whether he hits the target or not, right now the great Dane is Arsenal’s most important player.
Never short on confidence, the 22-year-old striker has always appeared to believe that fact, but now the stats back him up.
According to Bettorlogic Player Pro, over the last 50 games the Gunners have a win percentage of 52 per cent without Nicklas Bendtner.
With him in the side, the win-rate rockets up to a whopping 76 per cent.
To put that into perspective, over that same period just 66 per cent of the games Arshavin has played have been victories, 64 per cent for Fabregas and a miserable 52 per cent for Van Persie.
The 5-0 win against Porto was further evidence of Bendtner’s unique importance to his team.
Cesc Fabregas, the side’s playmaker, captain and arguably most talented individual was absent due to injury, but in his place Samir Nasri performed heroically.
Among his achievements on the night, the Frenchman made the opening goal, scored one and denied the opposition a certain away goal when he cleared off the line.
Had Nicklas Bendtner been absent from the starting line-up, it’s hard to imagine the result having been as positive. One only has to look back to that string of games when Arshavin was forced to deputise in the absence of Van Persie and Bendtner.
As undeniably talented as he is, the Russian looked forlorn as he was repeatedly buffeted by the Premier League defences and the Gunners dropped points against Everton, Aston Villa, Manchester United and Chelsea.
Since Nicklas Bendtner has been fit enough to start, however, Arsenal have won every single one of their Premier League games and progressed through to the quarter-finals of the Champions League.
It’s not just his goals that are proving useful to the Gunners – although the Danish international has now scored a not inconsiderable eight goals in 12 appearances this season – it’s his all-round contribution.
For like Emile Heskey for England, Bendtner’s importance to the team is not just about goals. His presence makes the team work as a unit.
That’s not because he’s a footballing genius like Fabregas but because his physical stature, work-rate and ability give the Gunners a focal point.
He may not be the world’s greatest striker. He’s certainly no Rooney or Drogba, but Arsenal have no other suitably muscular options at centre-forward, so when the Dane plays, so do the Gunners.
His presence allows the smaller, more technical players like Nasri, Arshavin and Rosicky to play. A willing runner, the Dane works the channels, holds up the ball, brings in other players, wins headers and pulls defenders out of position.
Whether it’s clumsiness or aggression, his 6ft 4in presence on the field ensures his opponents know they’ve been in a game. The same couldn’t be said for the vertically-challenged Arshavin.
Arsenal fans may be undecided about whether to take Bendtner to their hearts – although recent signs such as the cheers at the Emirates following his nightmare against Burnley suggest that is changing - but the players themselves are thoroughly convinced of his worth.
After the Porto game, Denilson explained what Bendtner means to the Gunners: “He’s a very important player for us because as a striker he’s big and tall. For a midfielder he makes our job easy because you just have to look for him.
“It’s true that even when he doesn’t score his presence is crucial to the team but now he’s scored three goals it just shows how important his goals can be for us.”
Of course, if Nicklas Bendtner can now become a 20 goal-a-season man then he will become invaluable to Arsenal – the Gunners’ equivalent to Drogba or Rooney.
Whether that becomes the case, we can only wait and see. But right now - as Arsenal attempt to win their first silverware since 2005 - one thing is for certain: it won’t happen without Nicklas Bendtner in the side - whether he's scoring hat-tricks or missing them.
