Having deployed Mikel Merino as an auxiliary striker to great effect in Saturday’s 2-0 win over Leicester, there’s growing intrigue among supporters as to whether Mikel Arteta will repeat the trick when West Ham visit the Emirates this weekend.
The Spain international bagged a brace in a promising 21-minute cameo at the King Power, sealing a win just as it looked like the Gunners’ injury-hit frontline might derail their title charge.
In comments that raised eyebrows after the game, Merino revealed he wasn’t given the heads-up about his new role until the morning of the game.
While the cat is out of the bag on that tactic, Arteta says he’ll continue keeping Merino – and other emergency options – in the dark to prevent them from overthinking their role if called upon.
“Not to him or to other players,” replied Arteta when asked if Merino had been given more warning about his plans this time.
“Especially because I want the players when they are on that pitch that they are feeling what they are doing and they are taking the initiative.
“I don’t want players that are thinking ‘what if tomorrow I have to do certain things’. That’s why I did it.”
Put to him that using Merino as a central striker was an “experiment that paid off”, Arteta continued: “If there’s something that we haven’t done or he hasn’t done in his career and we try, it’s called an experiment, that’s it then.
“At the end it’s [about] trying to fit the qualities that we have within the squad, within the players, to actually deliver. And what the game is requiring or the opposition is requiring.
“I would take it more into that aspect than the other one, but after it has to work. If not, it’s not the right call.”
Pressed again on the decision being a gamble and whether it’s a bet he’d place again, he added: “Obviously, every time you play a player, you are betting on that player.
“What is that bet? I’m prepared to bet a certain amount of money to earn a lot and not to bet a lot to earn very little.
“At the end, that’s by putting players in positions and in roles and surrounded by players that we believe it makes sense and it can work and they are comfortable doing it.”
“We believe he was right for that context but then he made it right. Starting a game is very different especially against a team that has adaptability to play in different ways with very different behaviours within different structures. That’s what we’ve prepared.”
Whether Merino starts against the Hammers will depend on how Arteta is feeling about Raheem Sterling. If Arsenal had more options available the Chelsea loanee probably wouldn’t be anywhere near tomorrow’s matchday squad after his abject showing at Leicester, but with options thin on the ground it feels like a 50-50 toss-up.
“Onto the next one,” was Arteta’s pep talk for the England international.
“Raz is so experienced and like many other players he knows that what you did yesterday, whether it was really good or not, is not relevant to the next game or the next action. He’s fully focused, he trained really well this week and he’s ready to go again.
“He has to have it [an impact] because we really need it.”
Should’ve signed someone
I guess I was personally a little bit placated by the idea that playing a guy like Merino up top is arguably not greatly different to signing a 30 something forward on loan who’s struggling for minutes/quality elsewhere, which is all we could get in Jan. Personally, I’d have still liked us to have set up a Weghorst type loan like United did last year, but at least you can now see a rationale as to why we didn’t.
Kolo Muani is at Juve on loan. You telling me we couldn’t use him right now?
Trying to work out the causal link between “feeling what you are doing on the pitch and taking the initiative” and “not being told where you might be playing tomorrow”. Arteta truly moves in mysterious ways, and I am once more reminded why I never pay any heed to his press conferences, because not only does he not give anything away, the stuff he does give away always feels like misdirection to keep you of the track of the stuff he’s actually not giving away. Anyway so long as he keeps doing what he’s doing no problems from me.
On the one hand it’s annoying, however fair play to Arteta, if we can’t guess the lineup, the opposition have no chance.
The definition of ‘Trust the Process!’
I’m such a mug. Sat there yesterday with Arsenal and Liverpool fixtures in one hand, league table in the other. I worked out about 8 different scenarios based on what I thought would be likely results up to the end of the season.
Boy did it make for unpleasant forecasts.
Except the one where we ended up as champions by 2 points.
And that’s the one I believe is going to play out. Come on you strikerless bastards! Mug these scouse twats off!
Not sure why your comment deserved a downvote. Surely we can dream, and hold on to the hope, however slim, that this year – against all odds (injuries) – we might just find a way to win the title. No-one can doubt this team’s resilience and belief.
My mums on here. She doesn’t like me swearing.
Enough about sterling. He adds nothing to Arsenal’s play. Aren’t there kids in the academy who could do a job albeit temporarily?
Double up with Tierney/L-S on the left defense/wing?
As the gaffer said, he’s gonna be needed, I love the way he’s handled the situation and for some reason, despite my eyes seeing what Sterling has offered (nowt), think the lad (and he is still only a lad) will contribute something semi significant between now and the end of the season.
The drama will write itself if he were to come in as late substitute and score a winner at Anfield 😄
If not KT.
Now Blanco is back in contention, i’d feel tempted to try Timber on the left wing. He’s such a clever baller.
There is a higher chance Neto will score a header sitting on the bench than Sterling making any impact.
Whether we like it or not we desperately need Raheem to click. So please guys, let’s just get behind the guy, because that only increases the chance of getting something out of him, and our season depends on it.
I trust our Emirates crowd. You guys are class. Love you guys!
We have to expect that Sterling will play some part in the rest of the season because we have so few options until Saka/Martinelli return that what we don’t want is to flog the life out of 2-3 players and leave them fatigued or injured. My feeling is he has lost what it was that made him dangerous, but he would perhaps do a job in the final period of the game IF we have a lead. I see no lack of effort recently from him, he is just physically not at the level he used to be and cannot… Read more »
Like they say, “hindsight is a bastard”. If we knew that Rashford would be available in January, we wouldn’t ‘blow’ our loan options on Raz. I like Sterling and I was really excited when we signed him. I didn’t see this level of drop-off in performance. I doubt anyone did. I expected more from Raz. Now, I wish we had our loan options available to pick Rashford in Jan. That would have been uber-exciting!
Probably won’t happen, but I’d love to see Ben White up front. Thinks of the chaos.
Both their centreback fall over, only to discover their laces have mysteriously been tied together.
Opposition keeper accidentally passes straight to Ben. He is somehow wearing their team shirt.
Two opposition players are sent off for fighting each other. Ben White was nowhere near them and had nothing to do with it…. he just smiles.