Mikel Arteta leaves Arsenal legend 'flabbergasted' as Mikel Merino statement made

Arsenal earned a much-needed 1-0 win over Chelsea on Sunday to move 12 points behind Premier League leaders Liverpool.

It turned out to be a good weekend for Mikel Arteta's side who beat their London rivals before seeing Arne Slot's side labour in a 2-1 Carabao Cup final defeat to Newcastle United. The Gunners will be hoping to see a tired-looking Liverpool team drop more points over the next few months as they aim to claw back a seemingly irreversible gap to the Reds.

But realistically, Arsenal's full attention will be on securing second place and trying to find a way past Real Madrid in their upcoming Champions League quarter-final. The Gunners have never won Europe's elite competition but will have been buoyed by Real's unconvincing performance to get past Atletico Madrid on penalties in the last 16.

Below are the latest media reports from around the Emirates Stadium as well as a view on each one;

Merson 'flabbergasted'

Arsenal legend Paul Merson has been left stunned by Mikel Arteta’s assessment of Chelsea following the Gunners' victory over their London rivals on Sunday.

“Mikel Arteta said Chelsea are the best attacking team in the Premier League after Arsenal's 1-0 victory over them on Sunday. I don't know what I'm missing," he said during his Sky Sports column this week

“When Nicolas Jackson and Cole Palmer are playing, they're a good team. They bring the best out of each other.

"Palmer's a better player when Jackson's playing and Jackson's a better player when Palmer's playing. That is fact. But I'm flabbergasted by that quote. I honestly don't get that. There will be a lot of Chelsea fans reading that thinking, 'Wow! What is he talking about?'”

Isaac Seelochan of football.london says: "It was a bizarre statement from Arteta and you can understand why Merson was so confused by it. Perhaps it is a way of him trying to boost his team's confidence at having beaten such a good attacking team. He's not fooling anyone though."

Merino praise

Arsenal icon Ian Wright has suggested that Mikel Merino is a strong fit for the 'number nine' role he's been asked to fill in recent weeks.

"What we've seen is that he's a very intelligent player," he said while working as a pundit on the Premier League's Matchday Live post-match coverage.

"When you watch him, and he's linking up the play, by the time [the ball] does get to him – I watched it again when they played PSV – he's so composed and knows where he's passing it.

"That's exactly what Arsenal need in respect of keeping the ball up in that [attacking] third. It's something we don't do well because we haven't got a focal point. Kai Havertz isn't that player either, where he links the play how Merino can do it. Merino does it in a way where he can hold it and you can go and join him. Then, all of a sudden, we’re playing a bit further up."

Isaac Seelochan of football.london says: "Merino has looked good at times up-front, but it's hard to imagine him being good enough to help Arsenal go on and win silverware this season. The Gunners may at their best find a way past an unconvincing Madrid in the Champions League, but they are surely going to need a greater attacking threat to lift the trophy."

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