Emergency striker Merino rescues Arsenal with double to sink Leicester
Mikel Arteta asked his Arsenal squad to show they could continue to fight for the title despite stomaching a significant injury to Kai Havertz. For 80 minutes it seemed fears of being blunt in attack would be well founded in a frustrating stalemate at struggling Leicester but then Ethan Nwaneri dinked a feathery cross into the box and the substitute Mikel Merino, unmarked between Wout Faes and Woyo Coulibaly six yards out, twisted his head to power in the first of two late goals. Merino, who replaced the ineffective Raheem Sterling, sealed victory with three minutes of normal time to play, to maintain Arsenal’s challenge.
Arteta began with Leandro Trossard as a false 9, Sterling to his left and Nwaneri to his right in a three-pronged attack but until Merino’s header the Arsenal manager must have been wondering how else to penetrate Leicester, now without a clean sheet in 21 matches in all competitions.
Author Of article : Ben Fisher at the King Power Stadium
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