Mikel Merino has shared his opinion on Moises Caicedo's red card offence in Arsenal's 1-1 draw away at Chelsea on Sunday. The Spaniard slammed Caicedo for what he felt was a "horrible challenge". Head referee Anthony Taylor originally gave the Ecuadorian a yellow card, but after being asked to review his decision by the VAR, he sent Caicedo off in the 38th minute.
Mikel Merino salvaged a 1-1 draw for Premier League leaders Arsenal, but they will feel like this was two-points dropped against a Chelsea side who were reduced to 10 men after just 38 minutes when Moises Caicedo was sent off. In an extremely feisty London derby that was littered with early yellow cards, it was no real surprise to see a dismissal, with Caicedo seeing red for a brutal tackle on Merino seven minutes before the interval.
Spain manager Luis de la Fuente gave a huge billing to Arsenal midfielder Mikel Merino as the La Roja boss claimed that the Gunners star is as good as Rodri and Pedri. On Tuesday, Merino scored twice as Spain thrashed Bulgaria 4-0 in a World Cup qualifying game at home. The win also helped the reigning European champions maintain their 100 per cent record in the qualifying rounds.
The Spain national team equalled their record of 29 unbeaten games in competitive matches following a dominant 4-0 victory over Bulgaria yesterday. Luis de la Fuente’s side matched the milestone previously set by Vicente del Bosque’s World Cup-winning Spain team, with Arsenal midfielder Mikel Merino scoring twice to seal the win. Spain achieved the result despite the absence of key players such as Lamine Yamal and captain Alvaro Morata.
Mikel Merino was Spain's difference-maker as the Arsenal star scored two headed goals to fire La Roja to an emphatic 4-0 World Cup qualifying win over Bulgaria at the Estadio Municipal Jose Zorrilla. Debutant Atanas Chernev put through his own net to all but secure the result, before Mikel Oyarzabal struck home a stoppage-time penalty to round off the scoring. The result edges Spain closer to history, marking their 29th competitive game unbeaten - equalling the record of their world champion generation.