Mikel Merino Praises Arsenal's Midfield Depth

Mikel Arteta’s midfield options are starting to look frightening, and Mikel Merino knows it.

Fresh from linking up with Arsenal, the World Cup winner did not bother playing down the scale of talent around him. He went the other way, leaning right into it.

“Honestly, it’s unreal. Probably the best midfield in football,” he said, laying out the standard in blunt terms.

For Merino, it is not just about names on a teamsheet, but the fact that “every player that can come on the pitch and make a good shift” keeps the bar sky-high.

That internal rivalry is exactly what he believes will drive Arsenal on.

“That’s good for the team. That’s good for the squad,” he explained. “It raises everyone’s level because if you have a bad day, the one that is close to you is going to do a great job.”

In other words: no comfort zones, no hiding places. Not in this midfield.

Instant impact from Arsenal’s new Brazilian

Merino’s praise did not stop at the collective. Asked about Arsenal’s latest Brazilian arrival, he was just as emphatic.

“Amazing signing,” he said. “He has proved throughout these years how good he is at Newcastle. And he showed it today again.”

One pre-season outing was enough to underline the point. In a friendly against Italian side Como, the new signing pulled on a Gunners shirt for the first time and slotted straight into Arteta’s structure. The traits that made him such a force at Newcastle were all there.

“A lot of composure, technical ability, a lot of defensive effort as well,” Merino noted. “So it’s a very good signing. A top player, but we have many of those in this team. So everyone that comes to help the team is welcome.”

The message is clear: Arsenal are not building around one star. They are stacking quality on top of quality.

Arteta sees a connection forming

Arteta, usually measured when it comes to early verdicts, could not ignore how quickly his new midfielder wanted to throw himself into the action.

“He’s only had three training sessions, but he looked good. He was really pushing to play some minutes today,” the Arsenal manager told reporters after the Como game.

That urgency to be involved, to feel the ball and the crowd, struck a chord.

“He wanted to get his debut and the feeling of playing in front of our fans immediately. You sense it immediately. I believe there’s a strong connection at play and that is going to make us better.”

Three sessions. A handful of minutes. Yet already, Arteta talks about connection and improvement. The integration process is not being eased in; it is being accelerated.

Hunger that doesn’t fade

All of this sits against a backdrop of a squad that has already tasted success. But Merino was adamant: nobody is treating last season’s silverware as a destination.

“I think we have an amazing squad. The hunger is still there. Not because we won it last season, we’re going to be happy with it,” he said.

The ambition is unambiguous.

“We want more and more and more and we want every trophy possible. That’s the best quality of this team. Not only the amount of depth that we have, the quality that we have in every position, but that hunger.”

Depth, quality, and a refusal to be satisfied. With a midfield Merino calls “probably the best in football” and a new signing already straining at the leash to impress, the question is no longer whether Arsenal can compete.

It is how far this group intends to push the limits of what they can win.