Mikel Merino confident Arsenal will be close to winning Champions League | OneFootball

Mikel Merino believes Arsenal could be on the brink of winning the Champions League following their record-breaking 7-1 demolition job of PSV Eindhoven.

The previously goal-shy Gunners ran riot in the opening leg of their last-16 tie in the Netherlands on Tuesday to all but secure their place in the quarter-finals, where Real Madrid or Atletico Madrid await.

Mikel Arteta’s side became the first team in Champions League history to score seven away from home in a knockout tie, with the result also Arsenal’s biggest on their travels in the competition.

It marked a remarkable change in fortunes for Arsenal who have fallen 13 points behind Liverpool in the race for the Premier League after they failed to score in their last two matches, collecting just one point.

“I guess that whenever you start a competition like this, if you don’t think that you can win it, it’s better not to come and play,” said Merino, who scored his side’s third of a pulsating night at the Philips Stadion.

“It has to be the goal of every single team in this tournament, and it is ours, for sure.

“We are here to win, to win every single game, and if we do what we know we can do, in the end, we will be close to winning it.

“But we don’t have to focus too much about it. We have to be proud, but at the same time think about the next game. It is coming real soon and we need to show the same mentality that we did tonight.”

Arsenal’s goal blitz on the grandest stage is even more impressive considering that they continue to operate without a recognised striker following season-ending injuries to Kai Havertz and Gabriel Jesus.

Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli are also sidelined which has enabled an extended run in the first team for Ethan Nwaneri, and he landed his eighth goal of the season in Arsenal’s crushing triumph.

Only Wayne Rooney and Michael Owen have recorded more goals for a Premier League club prior to their 18th birthday.

Nwaneri will have the opportunity to match, or indeed surpass their joint tally of nine, at Manchester United on Sunday or against Chelsea at the Emirates Stadium on March 16, with the winger turning 18 five days after the fixture against the Blues.

Commenting on another impressive display from the England youth international, Merino continued: “He is an unbelievable player. I have been saying it for a long time.

“I won’t get tired talking about him, because he deserves it. It is not only about his age and about how good he is on the pitch, but it’s also about his will, the intensity he puts into every single training session, and the way he faces every game with the maturity that he has.

“Also, he has the will to learn. He is not 17, playing in the Premier League and Champions League, thinking he has already learnt everything. He is always willing to listen to the other guys, listen to the boss, and that’s credit to him.

“It’s fresh blood, and obviously, for the fans, it is unbelievable to see players from the academy, born and raised here, to be making these amazing performances.

“It’s reassuring that this team has a good team now, but will have an even better one, or the same quality, in the future.”

Meanwhile, Arsenal have announced an increase in ticket prices at the Emirates next season.

Explaining the rise in costs to their supporters, the club said: “Our priority is to continue competing at the highest level in all competitions and win major trophies. This requires investment in our teams in an environment where our costs continue to rise.

“Match-by-match tickets will therefore increase by 3 per cent (upper tier) and 5 per cent (lower tier) from next season.”