Arsenal star Mikel Merino has been in good form recently.
The Spaniard joined the Gunners in the summer of 2024 from Real Sociedad. He was viewed by Mikel Arteta as the perfect man for his midfield.
However, following season-ending injuries to Gabriel Jesus and Kai Havertz, Arteta was left without a striker, and he turned to Merino to play up front.
That experiment has worked well so far, and Merino delivered for Spain as well on Thursday night.
Arsenal star Mikel Merino gets a new nickname
Spain faced the Netherlands at the Stadion Feijenoord on Thursday night.
Luis de la Fuente’s side are the kings of Europe having won Euro 2024 last summer. Many people expected them to deliver, but the Dutch caused them problems.
After Nico Willims gave Spain the lead, goals from Cody Gakpo and Tijjani Reijnders put the Netherlands ahead in the 46th minute.
It looked like the home side would pick up the win, but right at the end of the game, Merino, who had come on as a substitute, scored the equaliser.
The Arsenal man has developed a knack for scoring late goals. He did against Germany in the Euros, he scored a brace against Leicester City in the Premier League not too long ago and now, he has done it against the Dutch.
Mundo Deportivo in Spain are full of praise for Merino and have even given him a new nickname because of his ability to score goals just before the final whistle: “Mr. Goals on the horn!”
The outlet wrote: “He is not a forward, but at the same time he seems to be specializing in scoring goals when the referee already has the whistle in his mouth to decree the end of the match.”
“Regarding last night’s game, it is very difficult to achieve more with fewer interventions. He entered the field of play in the 84th minute to replace Fabián Ruiz and touched the ball only nine times. In one of them, he sent it to the back of the net so that the score was 2-2 and not a 2-1 that allowed the Netherlands to speculate in Sunday’s match.
“It remains to be seen whether Mikel Merino starts or not at Mestalla, but if not, if the match reaches its final stretch with everything to decide Luis de la Fuente will be able to pull ‘Mr. Goals on the horn’.”
Mikel Merino’s stats recently have been excellent
Merino came on for Ruiz on Thursday night and played as a midfielder.
But, the Arsenal star’s goal came from inside the box after finding himself in the right place at the right time to finish off Williams’ rebound.
Counting the goal against the Netherlands, Merino has scored five times and provided an assist in his last eight games, which is a fantastic record.
Arsenal won’t have Jesus or Havertz back this season, so Merino’s goals will be very important for them as they aim to go all the way in the Champions League.
The Spaniard’s strike last night should make him more confident than he has been recently.
