Mikel Merino is a hero for both club and country but one former Spain international believes he might have to leave to realise his first-team ambitions
05:00, 22 Jul 2026
Gazika Mendieta believes Mikel Merino will have to leave Arsenal if he doesn't cement a starting berth. The Spain international has emerged as a super sub for both club and country as his contributions off the bench proved to be crucial in a richly successful season.
Merino will return to London Colney as a World Cup-winner after helping Luis de la Fuente's side immortalise themselves in their 1-0 win over Argentina. The 30-year-old contributed with decisive efforts in their wins over Portugal and Belgium as he came off the bench to score winners in their respective knockout matches.
The Spaniard emerged as a versatile option for Mikel Arteta as he was deployed as a midfielder and striker before his ankle injury curtailed his role in the Premier League win. However, he netted four goals and provided three assists in 22 top-flight appearances for the Gunners.
But the former Spain and Barcelona star Mendieta believes Merino has to leave the club if he is to achieve his role as a first-team starter.
He told BetVictor: "Mikel Merino will not enjoy being a bench player at Arsenal. It works in the national team because of his specific role and recent goals, which makes things easier for everyone.
"However, he is an ambitious player who wants to be in the starting lineup. If he isn't, he may look elsewhere.
"The national team is different, with roles for players like Oyarzabal or Borja Iglesias. In a club setting, you don't want to be the 12th man who only comes on when goals are needed. You want to play regularly."
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Merino signed a long-term deal in North London after his £31million move from Real Sociedad in 2024. He illustrated his importance to Arsenal and Arteta during the early stages of his Gunners' career.
His move into the role of a focal point and established himself as a match-winner during his debut season at the Gunners, notably scoring a match-winning brace during Arsenal's 2-0 win at Leicester City.
Arteta said at the time: "I didn't think about him, to be fair. It was a lot of debate. I didn’t want to drive him crazy. I said to him this morning that he might play there, we believe he could sit there if the game needed the context. He won the game for us.
"But Mikel has got that. It's a good threat because he can smell danger. He can anticipate the action. He's got really good timing to arrive to certain areas. And then, obviously, he has the capacity to execute with a lot of parts of his body.
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"And he needed the delivery. He certainly had that as well and he put it in the back of the net.
"The moment you start to draw options there are too many, and at the end, you have to have the picture in your head of what can work and what are the variables and the options and the synergies within the team.
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"And then you have to feel it, and that's a feeling on the pitch and seeing what has happened actually, what is the game demanding. We believe that it was him in that moment, and then to get it right he needs to deliver, which is the hardest thing in football."