Mikel Arteta singles out Arsenal star for huge praise after changing positions

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has heaped praise onto Mikel Merino for the way he’s performed up front in recent times.

The Spain international arrived at the Emirates Stadium with the reputation of being a hard-working utility man in midfield, but he’s shown some superb finishing when asked to fill in up front.

Merino had a surprisingly good run in the team as a makeshift striker last season, and he filled in there again last night as Viktor Gyokeres was out injured.

Speaking after the game, Arteta singled out Merino for praise for the way he’s done his best to adapt and learn his new role…

? “A joy” – Mikel Arteta in awe of Mikel Merino’s adaptation to playing as a striker! ? pic.twitter.com/5ZlwQLdabb

— CaughtOffside (@caughtoffside) November 5, 2025

Speaking in the video clip above, Arteta described Merino as a joy to work with, and praised his mindset to do his bit to help the team out and make such an impact in a big away game in the Champions League.

“It’s a joy to have him, I always say the same thing,” Arteta said in his post-match press conference.

“It’s his versatility on the pitch, the things that he can do. It’s his mindset, it’s his leadership.

“Today we are missing a lot of attacking players and we had to find different solutions – he comes in, in the Champions League, scores two goals.”

Arsenal have had a lot of bad luck with injuries in recent times, and they currently have all three of Viktor Gyokeres, Kai Havertz and Gabriel Jesus out injured.

That means Merino is surely going to get a lot more chances to play up front, and it seems clear he’s up to that challenge.

The 29-year-old maybe didn’t initially look like he’d necessarily be that important at Arsenal when he first joined, but he’s proven a superb addition to Arteta’s squad.

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