The reasons why Arsenal should not abandon Mikel Merino experiment at Nottingham Forest - Gunners were toothless in attack against West Ham but Arteta should persist with Merino

Ethan Nwaneri had been a rare bright spark for Arsenal up until then, but after some brilliant defending from Myles Lewis-Skelly and the two goals from Merino, Arsenal are now four points behind Liverpool, who play Wolves on Sunday. Jordan Campbell breaks down the talking points from the King Power Stadium.

Mikel Merino scored twice against Leicester to secure a vital win. He dedicated the victory to his wife Lola as a way of making up for Valentine's Day blunder.

Arsenal are struggling to score goals without the likes of Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Jesus and Kai Havertz. The Gunners have been forced to deploy a makeshift front three in recent matches, with midfielder Mikel Merino leading the line as a number nine.

Arsenal’s 15-game unbeaten Premier League run came to an end as West Ham United thwarted their attempt to reduce the gap to leaders Liverpool at the top of the table.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta should prove Mikel Merino wrong and continue to utilise the 28-year-old as a makeshift striker when the Gunners host West Ham in the Premier League at the weekend. Merino came off the bench for the final 20 minutes of Arsenal’s clash with Leicester on Saturday and proved to be the matchwinner as he scored a quickfire brace.

Mikel Merino solved Arsenal’s attacking problems with two late goals off the bench to secure a 2-0 win at relegation-threatened Leicester in the Premier League.

Mikel Arteta may be in the middle of an attacking injury crisis – but he could be set to name his starting defence for the first time since November. Arsenal face high-flying Nottingham

The Arsenal fans serenaded Merino at the full-time whistle, singing his name continuously and this will comfortably go down as his best day in an Arsenal shirt. The Spaniard has so far failed to hit the heights expected of him after joining Arsenal in the summer from Real Sociedad for around £30million.

Arsenal match winner Mikel Merino has admitted it was a surprise to come on as a striker against Leicester City having never played in the position before.

Arsenal were shut out for the second-straight Premier League game, drawing 0-0 at Nottingham Forest as the Gunners attack continues to condemn their minimal title hopes.

Arteta has also claimed that Nathan Butler-Oyedeji can play as a number nine. He has been on the Arsenal bench in their last two games.