Arsenal’s midfielder Mikel Merino has expressed confidence in his team’s push for the English Premier League title. The Spanish midfielder cited the weekend’s London derby draw with Chelsea as a show of strong character and mentality by his teammates.
“The mentality and the character that these guys are showing is just unbelievable. You can see it, just after conceding a goal away from home, against a team who is normally dominant, and you are the ones who are dictating the tempo and attacking and creating the chances. This is a big sign of what this team is about.”
“I know what you mean,” Merino said. “You have to look at it all – not only the result. But at the same time look at where the team is coming from, how the team is playing and I think it was a day to be very proud of the guys. We did an amazing job after a difficult couple of weeks with a lot of injuries”, he continued.
The 28-year old who joined Arsenal in the summer from Real Sociedad said his teammates are solely focused on the challenge despite being nine points adrift of league leaders Liverpool with just eleven games played.
“If you want to be in a big club, if you want to achieve big things, you have to love the pressure. You have to love playing against the best and for the biggest trophies”, he added.
“The mentality that these players have is to try to be the best; every single day, every training session. It is not only about wanting to do it. You have to show it. We are showing it in training sessions, we have to show it in games, as well. For sure, I think we will.”
Arsenal have challenged Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City for the title in the past two seasons narrowly missing out on the final day last season and Merino believes focusing on the present will make the team better.
“We have to look at ourselves, how we want to perform and not start thinking about what is going to happen if we lose. That’s adding extra pressure.
“We know we have to win every game. We want that and we have to work for that. In order to achieve that we have to focus on the present, on ourselves, on improving and getting better.”
Merino and Arsenal are back in action after the international break when they play host to Nottingham Forest in the English Premier League.
Olakitan is a young writer with a strong passion for sports, having gained experience with IndyPress and Nimelssa Press. His enthusiasm for sports inspired him to cover events both within his school and beyond. With a deep understanding of the game and a refined skillset, he brings sports coverage to a broad, global audience in a way that’s engaging and accessible.
