Forget Eberechi Eze, another Arsenal player had a shocking game vs Aston Villa

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Arsenal had an afternoon to forget against Aston Villa in the Premier League.

Unai Emery’s men were comfortably the superior side for large parts of the clash. They outmuscled the Gunners almost every time they got on the ball and deservedly won the game, albeit with the last kick of the match.

Arsenal had several players who weren’t great at Villa Park. Eberechi Eze had a disappointing game, while Piero Hincapie has also come under some criticism.

Another player who was really poor was Mikel Merino.

Mikel Merino rated as Arsenal’s worst player vs Aston Villa

Merino was in great form leading up to Arsenal’s clash against Aston Villa on Saturday.

The Spain international had scored great headers against Chelsea and Brentford, and he deserved to keep his place in the side.

That is why Mikel Arteta gave him another go up front, leaving Viktor Gyokeres on the bench. But it did not work this time.

Merino was terrible in the first half. He offered no threat offensively, he failed to win many duels, and even when he dropped deep to help build play up, he didn’t succeed.

The former Real Sociedad man was so poor that Arteta decided to take him off at half-time.

Sofascore gave Merino a 6.3/10 rating for his performance, the worst of any Arsenal player who started the game against Villa.

Arteta now has a decision to make about who his striker will be for the upcoming games.

Describe Mikel Merino’s performance vs Aston Villa using just three words!

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Arsenal fans react to Mikel Merino’s performance vs Aston Villa

Arsenal fans were all delighted with Merino’s performances against Chelsea and Brentford, but the reaction has been very different following the defeat to Aston Villa.

The Spaniard will be the first to admit that he didn’t have a great game, and he was rightfully taken off at half-time.

Taking to X to deliver their verdicts, here’s what a few Arsenal supporters had to say about Merino’s display.

One fan tweeted: “Merino shouldn’t start ahead of Gyokeres. Arteta needs to trust his players!”

Another wrote: “This Merino nonsense is not going to work in every match.”

“Merino experiment needs to end. Gyokeres on immediately,” said another.