Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta: We need more like super sub Mikel Merino

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta says other players will have to step up like super sub Mikel Merino after the makeshift striker secured the Premier League title hopefuls a vital victory at lacklustre Leicester.

The Gunners arrived at the King Power Stadium reeling from Kai Havertz’s season-ending hamstring injury, meaning the top scorer joined Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Martinelli on the sidelines.

Arsenal’s makeshift front three failed to click at Leicester despite 17-year-old Ethan Nwaneri impressing on the right, but Arteta’s decision to replace ineffective Raheem Sterling with Merino proved inspired.

The Spain midfielder admitted he had never played up front before but looked every bit the frontman as he headed the visitors ahead before striking home another to seal a 2-0 win.

“Very tough match,” Arteta said after a game that saw Myles Lewis-Skelly make a goal-saving interception shortly before the opener.

“The first half, especially the first 20 to 25 minutes, we struggled to get certain momentum because we did a lot of simple things very wrong, but the second half was very different.

“We had much more urgency, better intentions, better executions and then you can sense that the game was going in the direction that it had to go.

“Saying that, there’s a moment when we give the ball away in the middle of the park. The space is open in the counter and Myles has to make a magic touch to deny the goal.

“In the other end, then that’s when we score the goal and Mikel obviously made a huge impact to score the two goals.”

Asked if it was too simple to say that Merino is Arsenal’s goalscoring solution, he said: “Yeah, we’re going to have to share that, and we know that we’re going have a various contexts.

“We’re going