Merino reveals key moment that 'won' Arsenal the Premier League

The Gunners set the pace at the top of the table for much of last season, but the title charge threatened to come off the rails in February. A draw with Wolves raised serious questions over the team's mentality.

Arsenal went 2-0 up against the side sitting bottom of the table but fell apart late on as Wolves snatched a point. Merino admitted that even the Arsenal players had their confidence shaken by that result, but it led to what he feels was a title-winning meeting.

"To be honest, there were doubts inside the team too. Giving away a 2-0 lead should never happen.

But the day after the game, the players had a meeting inside the dressing room, without the boss. This was about how a group of human beings handle adversity together.

I spoke about how I saw the team from the outside, and I said that this was something we as players had to handle, because the boss couldn't do everything for us. When one person has so many tasks at one club, you need leaders who can figure things out on their own.

Well, at this club, we do. In my view, that was the day we won the title.

Even when we lost to Bournemouth and City, that meeting kept us together." Merino was out of action during that period due to a serious foot injury. The Spaniard has previously spoken about needing a mobility scooter to get around, after the injury left him unable to walk for two months.

Reflecting again on those months at the start of 2026, Merino admitted he feared his career might be over. "He'd been doing this for 30 years.

He had called five of the best specialists in the world, and none of them had seen it either."