When did Mikel Merino start to be seen as a striker who sometimes plays in midfield rather than a midfielder who fills in up front? His winning performance against Brentford was just the latest example of him rightfully filling the role.
The 29-year-old has scored or assisted in five of his six starts up front for Arsenal since returning to his position following injury to Victor Gokeres. Against Brentford, he achieved both with a header for the first goal and a feed for Bukayo Saka for the second goal.
“He was great again today,” said Mikel Arteta with a smile, praising the centre-forward’s instinctive play that led to the opening goal. “The way he scored goals was very smart. His timing, the way he got into position and his execution.”
His eight headed goals since the start of last season are the most by a Premier League player in all competitions.
Arsenal took the lead with Mikel Merino heading in from Ben White’s early cross.
All this from a central midfielder who had never played the role before until Kai Havertz injured his hamstring last season.
There’s on-the-job learning, and then there’s this. Merino has mastered the position and has the numbers to prove it.
He has scored a staggering 21 goals for club and country so far this year, and his transformation into a goal-scoring centre-forward has not only benefited Arsenal, but also the Spanish national team. Merino has emerged as a key spearhead for both teams.
Arsenal have Gokeres and Gabriel Jesus available again, with Kai Havertz right behind them. But everyone will probably have a hard time getting rid of Merino, whose value to the team isn’t just about goals. “He makes the team even better,” Arteta said after the match.
Since moving up to the front early last month, Arsenal have scored 15 goals in six games, jumping from an average of 2.1 goals per game to 2.5 goals per game, including two of their best attacking performances of the season against Spurs and Bayern Munich. Merino scored or set nearly half of the total.
Use Chrome Browser for a more accessible video player
Highlights of the Premier League match between Arsenal and Brentford
Of course, he differs from, say, Gökeres in that he doesn’t play a traditional number nine role.
When he’s not sniffing out an opportunity in the box, he drops into midfield, swapping positions with teammates, creating space to run into and generally confusing opposition defenders.
In the four games he has started up front in the Premier League this season, Merino has averaged half as many touches in the opposition box per 90 minutes as Gokeres, but almost double the total number of touches and passes, underscoring how well he is putting things together.
Arteta wanted to emphasize his work even when in possession. Merino has a huge workload on his shoulders these days, starting eight straight games in a month for club and country, but those watching him on Wednesday wouldn’t have known that.
Mikel Merino’s touch and passing map highlights his all-round impact
“I remember one action. He passed the ball to Martin (Odegaard) at the back, but Martin didn’t follow it. Merino ran 40 meters and chased the ball to the corner flag,” Arteta said.
“He goes back and gets the ball back. He’s everywhere. He’s got really good momentum at the moment.”
Merino had four tackles in the game. Premier League tracking data shows he ran more than 12km, second only to Odegaard in total. No player had more than 368 focused runs.
Working tirelessly was not uncommon. As well as scoring more goals and assisting than any other Arsenal player in the last four Premier League games, Merino has made a total of 10 tackles, second only to left-back Riccardo Calafioli.
Arsenal’s Mikel Merino celebrates after taking the lead
His all-round contributions set him apart both off and on the ball, but he also has another important attribute.
“As I said in the press conference earlier, it’s his curiosity, his desire to learn and maybe his desire to help the team,” Arteta added.
“He knew from the beginning of the season that we had big problems. We lost Victor, Kai left, Gabriel Jesus left, so we needed a solution and he did really, really well last year.
“I think he’s probably taken the next step this season because he’s been able to do a lot more.
“I think the team really appreciates it and he enjoys it too.”
Arteta feels his success in this role is a lesson for others. It also taught him a lesson. Concerned about having too many strikers in the summer, Merino rescued the Arsenal manager from what appeared to be a lack of strikers.
Use Chrome Browser for a more accessible video player
Mikel Arteta said he was proud and happy for his players after the 2-0 win
“I took that lesson because I was thinking all summer, what would happen to Gabriel Jesus and Kai Havertz if I brought in the number nine? It drove me crazy a lot because I liked them a lot too.
“What are we going to do? How are we going to deal with it? And right now, with these guys getting hurt, we don’t have a problem.
“So just step away from the present, step away from the moment, and deal with the situation as it comes. That’s it.”
And that’s what Merino did too. A stand-in striker might be Arsenal’s best option in their current position. Gokeres, Jesus and Havertz are fighting to get back into the team.
