armory Star Mikel Merino has admitted it was strange celebrating the Premier League title off the pitch as he recovers from foot surgery.
has been a midfielder speaking in spain all this week About Arsenal, the World Cup and even Pep Guardiola leaving Manchester City. This time it's an interview with Marca.
Premier League success
It's been a big week for the 29-year-old, who celebrated Arsenal's Premier League title following Manchester City's draw with Bournemouth. And Mone could be in for even more celebration when Luis de la Fuente announces his Spain squad for the World Cup.
The midfielder is expected to be part of a group that has played regularly for the European champions during De La Fuente's reign.
However, the focus right now is on the Premier League. And he admits it was a strange feeling to celebrate the title without being on the pitch.
When asked what it was like to be crowned without playing, he said, "Weird, weird, weird."
“I've talked to my teammates about this: It's weird to celebrate, jump and be happy without your shoes on.
"But I also say that the sooner the better, and by whatever means. The important thing was to secure the championship and, above all, it was well-deserved."
"We had a good time watching the match at the training ground and celebrating afterwards. Then we all gathered together: staff, physios, trainers and families. It was amazing."
Suffer like Arsenal fans
That title was just one part of a broader string of titles for Mikel Merino, who is now on the verge of returning to action after nearly five months out.
He underwent foot surgery at the end of January and has since spent 115 days out of action, missing 25 appearances for Arsenal. Whether or not he features again before the season ends remains to be seen.
It means he has been forced to watch from the sidelines as Arsenal fight for their first Premier League title in 22 years. He is suffering like everyone else.
When asked how much 'suffering' he had endured, he said, "A lot, though for a short time."
"Especially when I got the news and all your expectations and hopes were dashed, especially because of the long recovery time. But I quickly turned things around, trusted my wife, we looked on the positive side. And since then I've handled it quite well.
Although anyone who sees me might think I don't suffer because I keep it inside. I'm calm, still, and analyzing a lot, but it's horrible.''
the surgeon was astonished
Even worse for the midfielder was the possibility of missing the World Cup. And with surgeons also battling injuries his prospects were not looking very good.
"From the moment I got injured my heart told me: "I'm going to achieve this." But I knew that was more wishful thinking than reality.
“When I started running and saw that everything was going well, that's when I thought I could do it. That was the key moment to see whether the surgery was successful or not. Success.
"Even the surgeons were skeptical because there weren't a lot of similar cases. Not having a clear plan caused me the most stress. I'm someone who likes to understand what's going on and know the way forward.
"I have had more psychological support at this time than at other times in my career. Here, I needed more from people close to me: my family, my wife."
"In the beginning, there were some bad moments. But as soon as I decided to focus on what I could control and give it my all to reach the World Championships, everything became much easier."
