Fabrizio Romano names ‘perfect’ Arsenal player who ‘is going to surprise a lot of people’ very soon

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The summer transfer window isn’t done yet, but Arsenal should be mostly happy with the squad they have assembled.

The Gunners were already one of the best clubs in the Premier League. They went toe-to-toe with Manchester City for two seasons in a row and fell just short on both occasions.

All Arsenal needed was to address their weaknesses, and Mikel Arteta and Edu Gaspar have definitely done that with the signings of Riccardo Calafiori and Mikel Merino.

Fabrizio Romano has now delivered his verdict on one of them.

Fabrizio Romano says Mikel Merino will surprise many people at Arsenal this season

Arsenal officially announced the signing of Merino on Tuesday.

The Gunners had to work long and hard to get this deal over the line. Real Sociedad didn’t make it easy for them, but Edu managed to seal the deal after weeks of negotiations.

Merino is expected to make his Arsenal debut against Brighton on Saturday, and Gooners can’t wait to see him in action at the Emirates.

The Spaniard will finally replace Granit Xhaka in Arteta’s midfield, and that should make Arsenal significantly stronger than they were last season.

Romano has been giving us all the updates throughout the Merino transfer saga, and he always maintained that Arsenal are confident of signing the Spanish midfielder.

Now, the journalist has delivered his verdict on Merino while also talking about Manuel Ugarte, who is headed to Manchester United.

He said on the Daily Briefing: “Of course, we also know now that Mikel Merino is an Arsenal player after yesterday’s official announcement, and it comes as Manuel Ugarte to Manchester United also became a ‘here we go’ earlier on yesterday.

“Some fans have been asking me about these two deals and for a comparison on who’s getting the better midfielder. Still, they are completely different players in my opinion, I’d say it’s impossible to compare. However, I feel these are both excellent moves.

“Merino is perfect for what Arsenal needed as he brings balance and quality. Man United needed a player with Ugarte’s skills and they only only wanted him, he was the priority number one since June.

“I think Merino in particular is going to surprise a lot of people, and for €32m plus add-ons it’s excellent business by Arsenal.”

Mikel Arteta has a clear plan for Merino at Arsenal

Arsenal looked like they lacked the right balance in their side in the first half of the 2023/24 season.

That was because of some of Arteta’s decisions to deploy players in certain positions that clearly didn’t work as well as he would’ve liked.

With Merino in now, Arteta’s plan for the likes of Kai Havertz and co is clear!

The Spaniard will be used as a left-sided number eight, which means the Havertz-in-midfield experiment is a thing of the past for Arsenal fans.

Calafiori is expected to be used as a left-back once he settles in, with either Gabriel Martinelli or Leandro Trossard starting on the left flank.

That makes Arsenal’s left side of the pitch almost as strong as their opposite side, and that could give them the push they need to get over the final hurdle and win the Premier League title.