lol you couldn’t mention it enough at the time though
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Move on pal it’s been months I honestly don’t care anymore
Out of curiosity, what are your thoughts on him so far?
He’s done okay, still think it’s a bit too early to judge
Prefacing this by saying I was a big proponent of this move but have to say, this move hasn’t worked at all how I expected it too.
Injured in his first training, had some other short injuries as well but he just hasn’t made the impact in his performances.
We saw a glimpse of what he can do at his best against Chelsea but that was it. I really hope he gets to have a bigger second half this season.
so that’s what his role is in this squad… A ball winner, overturning possession and creating transitions?
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Didn’t think he was all that good yesterday, but who cares? He scored a goal at a critical time.
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Hopefully it’s an indicator that he’s a bit more settled in.
I think one of the disappointments about him has been that as a former Newcastle player he should have come Premier League ready and I’m not sure he really did come ready to plug in and play in this team.
That’s a significant part of his role, yes
He’s also a very good passer.
But why is winning duels looked at so poorly though? Ain’t that part of winning the midfield which usually gives a big say in who wins games?
Hmm I dunno, winning duels is good I guess. I mentioned in the match day thread yesterday that it felt like we lost every long-ball duel.
Just from watching him all season, I’ve been very unsure what he does in this team. But it’s been made clear to me now.
Glad he scored too!
For what is worth, I thought he did alright yesterday. Happy he got the goal but I expect more from him.
I expect more from him and certainly felt that his previous experience of the league would mean that he slots in nicely this season. Another way of looking at it though is Rice’s view of this Arsenal team and how hard it was to acclimate into a system, and he’s been playing in the PL for years.
The early injury sucked to Merino sucked any early enthusiasm out of it too, which doesn’t help.
I think he’ll come good and is a great defensive option to have at the left-8 position. Over time, we’ll see how well his passing range is - he certainly has it in his locker.
I think he has the ability to become a goalscoring 8 similarly to Xhaka and Rice. I just wish he’d let it rip more often as the areas he gets into are where he should be shooting from.
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I think the white shorts on our kit make that a bit risky
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Our ‘‘left 8’’ position is more complicated than you may think. They’ve basically got to be a hybrid between a 10 and 6. Have good positional awareness, be able to help defend and contribute to attack, whilst being good at ball retention and also ball winning. Considering Merino missed the first 6 weeks due to injury, I think he’s not doing bad at all. He’s looked better as the season has gone on for sure.
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Wasn’t it just a game or two ago people were questioning him
He’s been so so and looks to be a bit of a system player, not sure what’s being asked of him will necessarily get the best out of him either.
I suppose it’s still early but wouldn’t say I’m convinced about him at this stage.
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It is difficult to suggest that Merino has improved our midfield, but it is possible that he has been bought in as an experienced squad member. If so, fine.
It is only fair to point out that Rice hasn’t been great this season either. Nor has Odegaard, so singling out Merino is a tad unfair. Granted Rice and Odegaard have credit in the bank.
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Fuck that…just get a creative midfielder and let Rice manage the defensive side