Mikel Merino: ‘I’m adapting to being a striker – I like the contact, I never back down’

Arsenal’s emergency No 9 on learning his new position, taking on Real Madrid in Europe and success with Spain

Mikel Merino sits in a briefing room on the second floor of Spain’s Las Rozas headquarters, an A1 tactics sheet covering the table. Felt tip in hand, he is making his way up the paper pitch, neatly marking the positions he has occupied, starting out in goal at school. “No more: I have to protect my shoulder now,” he begins, laughing. “I’ve been a left‑sided centre-back. At Dortmund I played there in a three. And in a back four, in the Spain Under-21s. I’ve played as a No 6 … I’ve played as a No 8 … I’ve played as a No 10 … as a kid, I played here, on the right wing …”

There’s a grin. “And now,” Merino says, applying a perfectly timed pause before drawing another cross. “Now I’m playing here.” Seven positions, impeccably spaced on the page, but which does he prefer? “Pfff, I don’t know. Lately, I like this one,” he replies, tapping the final mark, near the opposition’s penalty area, and cracking up again. “You know, I’m getting a taste for it.”

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