Arsenal keep pressure on Liverpool, new Manchester City star is born, Everton win again
Mikel Merino keeps Gunners’ title hopes alive with double in Leicester victory, Haaland survives injury scare as City drub Newcastle
The 17-year-old forward Ethan Nwaneri drew comparisons with Lionel Messi, but it was the unlikely figure of Mikel Merino who came off the bench to rescue Arsenal’s Premier League title dreams in a 2-0 victory at Leicester City.
The Gunners’ injury issues presented a rare starting opportunity for Raheem Sterling, but Mikel Arteta, the head coach, ran out of patience with the toiling former England winger after 69 minutes. On went Merino, who appeared in every match of Spain’s triumphant 2024 European Championship campaign, to score after 81 and 87 minutes.
Nwaneri had twice hit the woodwork, as relegation-haunted Leicester threatened to claim the draw that would have moved them one point behind 17th-placed Wolves. The teenager teed-up Merino’s opener to cap an outstanding individual display that had Joe Cole, the former Chelsea midfielder, veering dangerously close to hyperbole.
“These little touches in and around the box - I don’t even want to say it, but it’s like Lionel Messi,” said Cole, who rushed to add that “he didn’t want to put any more pressure on [Nwaneri]”. That horse might have bolted, but the same is not yet true of Arsenal’s championship push, after they moved four points behind Liverpool, who face Wolves today.
City crown new Egyptian king
Manchester City responded to their mid-season collapse by shelling out £180 million (US$226m) on four players in the winter transfer window.