Arsenal Fans Are Growing Concerned With £130k p/w Ace After Brentford Display.
Arsenal kept the pressure on Liverpool with a 3-1 Premier League victory over fellow Lononders Brentford on New Year’s Day – but are growing in frustration over Mikel Merino, who joined for £31.6 million in the summer, after another ‘flat’ performance.
None other than Bryan Mbeumo fired Thomas Frank’s side into the lead within 13 minutes, but it wasn’t long before the visitors asserted their dominance with the in-form Gabriel Jesus nodding home their first of the afternoon.
Merino himself and Gabriel Martinelli completed an impressive comeback on away soil – scoring in the 50th and 53rd minute, respectively – as they retained their second-placed spot in the Premier League table, six points behind Arne Slot’s Liverpool.
Arsenal’s preparations for the all-London affair were derailed by a virus on the eve of the game, according to Mikel Arteta, which saw Kai Havertz unavailable. Declan Rice also started the game on the bench, allowing Merino to make his first start since 18 December.
A 31-cap Spain international, Pamplona-born Merino has now found the back of the net twice since joining the Gunners in the summer after he opened his account for the club in a 2-2 draw with Liverpool at the end of October 2024. Fans are unhappy with the £130,000-per-week earner’s performance, though, with them suggesting that he struggles to offer anything of note from an attacking perspective.
Taking to X (formerly Twitter), one Arsenal supporter claimed that his 50th-minute goal ‘saved him’ from heavy criticism on the back of influence – or lack thereof – in the final third: “The goal saved him today. He doesn’t seem to be offering a lot going forward.”
“He can’t pass, can’t run, can’t press, can’t drive with the ball,” another added before claiming: “I know we need to get behind our players, but Merino makes it so hard to.”
Another fan insisted that Merino, who made his Gunners debut against Paris Saint-Germain in this season’s Champions League campaign, proved his ability to add an injection of pace to their attacks. He also slammed his lack of defensive cover by saying:
“He slows the pace of our game while attacking. He also doesn’t come back to cover defensively. He doesn’t take risks and constantly stays only on game plans. No singular creativity for him.”
The statistics, however, may suggest that Arsenal fans are expecting the world from someone who is a) still learning their trade in England’s top flight and b) putting up some decent numbers, as evidenced by the brief round-up below.
Merino, who lined up alongside Martin Odegaard and Thomas Partey in Arsenal’s three-man midfield constellation, scored from his only short on target, completed 100% (1/1) of his long balls and was accurate in his passing 80% (32/40) of the time.
Not only did he complete three tackles, highlighting his competency from a defensive perspective, but he was also fruitful in the majority of his duels (6/11; 55%) in a well-rounded display – but as alluded to, the Emirates faithful are still undecided.
All statistics per Sofascore – correct as of 02/01/25
