Arteta can finally axe Merino by starting "unplayable" Arsenal star up top

It’s been a season full of surprises for Arsenal fans this year.

For example, we aren’t sure many people saw Manchester City’s dramatic collapse in form coming, nor Liverpool’s sensational form under new boss Arne Slot.

However, perhaps the one that would have shocked fans the most had you told them back in the summer is the fact that, for all intents and purposes, Mikel Merino is now the club’s starting number nine.

A failure to reinforce the frontline and an absurd number of injuries has forced Mikel Arteta to play the Spaniard up top for over a month now, and while he hasn’t done terribly, it may be time to try something else and start arguably the most exciting player in the squad ahead of him.

Arteta’s Merino alternatives

Before getting to the player in question, it’s worth looking at some of the other members in the squad Arteta could, but probably shouldn’t, turn to as a replacement for Merino.

The first option, which would almost certainly be met with significant backlash, would be to bring Raheem Sterling back into the starting line-up.

Now, the argument for this would be that he’s played as a central striker several times before and has a fairly decent record when doing so, scoring 14 goals and providing six assists there in 28 games for Manchester City.

However, that was quite some time ago, and to put it diplomatically, he has been dismal for the Gunners this term, so much so, in fact, that the manager has only started him ten times across the entire season, despite the injury crisis.

The second option would be to play Leandro Trossard or Gabriel Martinelli there, and while this would be far more popular than the prior idea, there are still some issues.

For example, neither player has been in particularly good form this season, with the former racking up just 13 goal involvements in 43 games and the latter 11 in 38, so having them as the club’s focal attacking point seems unwise at the moment.

Furthermore, if Arteta plays the Belgian on the left and the Brazilian on the right, he can make the bold and potentially correct decision to play the club’s most exciting attacker down the middle.

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The Arsenal star who should replace Merino

With Bukayo Saka unlikely to start a game for a few more weeks, it would be fair to say that the most exciting player currently in the squad is Ethan Nwaneri, and Arteta should be bold enough to start him up top in place of Merino.

Now, there is certainly an argument to be made that a decision such as this would put enormous pressure on the youngster, and while that is true, he’s shown us this season that pressure means very little to him.

Moreover, the potential upsides of starting such a dynamic and incisive player at the tip of the spear are massive and could be just the thing to help the team get into some form ahead of the Champions League clash with Real Madrid next month.

For example, despite playing just 1087 minutes across 29 first-team appearances this season, the often “unplayable” ace, as dubbed by Jack Wilshere, has scored eight goals and provided one assist.

That means that at just 18 years old, the Hale End superstar is averaging a goal involvement every 120.77 minutes, which for a winger come midfielder is a brilliant rate of return.

Finally, we wouldn’t be surprised if this idea was already in Arteta’s head, as it was only in December that he told the press that the teenage sensation could develop into a striker due to his instinctive ability to finish.

Ultimately, while Merino has done his best in the circumstances, it’s time the manager played someone who could make the most of goalscoring opportunities up top, and from what we have seen this season, that could be Nwaneri.

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