Merino Reveals Crisis Meeting That Won Arsenal the Premier League

Mikel Merino has revealed that Arsenal’s players held a crisis meeting without Mikel Arteta following their draw at Wolves last season, and believes it was the moment that won them the Premier League title.

Writing in a personal essay for The Players' Tribune, the midfielder lifted the lid on how the squad responded to one of the most damaging results of their campaign.

Arsenal travelled to Molineux in February as league leaders, and appeared on course for victory after goals from Bukayo Saka and Piero Hincapié put them two goals up. However, Wolves pulled one back before substitute Tom Edozie equalised in stoppage time, as Arsenal became the first leaders in Premier League history to let a two-goal lead slip against a side in the relegation zone.

Merino admitted the result led to doubts within the squad, insisting that throwing away a two-goal lead should never happen.

The day after the game, the players gathered in the dressing room without Arteta. Merino explained that everyone spoke, and that the discussion had nothing to do with tactics but instead focused on how the group would handle adversity together.

He added, 'In my view, that was the day we won the title.'

At the time, Merino was sidelined with a stress fracture in his foot, and he used his position to attempt to offer a different perspective. He told his teammates how the team looked from the outside, and argued that this was something the players needed to resolve themselves, as the manager could not be expected to do everything.

Mikel Merino is a member of the leadership group at Arsenal, including Martin Ødegaard, Declan Rice, Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Magalhães, and stressed the importance of having leaders who can find solutions on their own.

The meeting proved to be a turning point. Arsenal humiliated Tottenham Hotspur in the north London derby just days later and went on to win nine of their remaining eleven league games. Merino said that even when they suffered defeats to Bournemouth and Manchester City during the run-in, the bond formed in that meeting kept the group together.

The squad also had to deal with tensions from the Wolves game itself. David Raya later revealed he exchanged words with Gabriel after a collision between the pair led to the equaliser, though he insisted nothing was personal.

Whilst Merino credited the players for taking ownership, he was also full of praise for Arteta, saying the manager was responsible for the culture within the squad.

Arsenal went on to end their 22-year wait for the title, and will now look to retain it for the first time in the club's history this season.