Mikel Merino has lifted the lid on what he believes was the defining moment of Arsenal's Premier League-winning campaign, pointing to a players-only meeting held after a dramatic late collapse against Wolves as the catalyst for their eventual success.

Arsenal had dominated the top of the table for much of the season, but their composure was called into question in February when they surrendered a 2-0 lead against bottom-placed Wolves, settling for a draw that sparked fresh scrutiny of the team's mental resilience in big moments.

According to Merino, the result shook belief even within the squad, prompting the players to hold a private meeting the following day, without manager Mikel Arteta present. The Spanish midfielder explained that the gathering wasn't about tactical adjustments but about addressing how the group responded to setbacks together.

"One slip, and all we heard was 'same old Arsenal'," Merino said. "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."

He continued: "Everyone spoke up. Nobody talked about tactics. 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."

Merino stressed that the squad needed to take ownership of its own standards rather than relying solely on the manager. "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," he said, adding that he views that meeting as the real turning point of the season. "In my view, that was the day we won the title. Even when we lost to Bournemouth and City, that meeting kept us together."

Notably, Merino was not even playing at the time, having been sidelined by a serious stress fracture in his foot that left him unable to walk for two months and reliant on a mobility scooter. Reflecting on that period, he admitted there were moments he feared his career could be over, given the rarity of his injury.

"The situation was even worse, because the specialist who did the scan had never seen a stress fracture in that part of the foot," Merino revealed. He explained that the specialist, despite three decades of experience, consulted five of the world's leading experts, none of whom had encountered a similar case. "Nobody knew how my foot would recover, or if it would recover at all. Part of me feared that I would never play football again," he said, recalling how he broke down in tears when telling his wife, Lola, about the diagnosis.

Despite the setback, Merino fought his way back to fitness and convinced Arteta to risk including him for a late cameo on the final day of the Premier League season. That brief appearance proved pivotal, helping secure his place in Spain's World Cup squad.

Once there, Merino became a central figure in Spain's run to the final, scoring a stoppage-time winner against Portugal in the last 16 and another decisive goal against Belgium in the quarter-finals. Though he didn't find the net in the final against Argentina, he made a crucial defensive intervention, blocking a goal-bound effort from Lionel Messi with his face in the closing stages.

"I went down like I'd been shot, which I had," Merino said of the incident, admitting he temporarily lost vision in one eye. "But when the whistle went, I just felt this surge of relief, because we hadn't messed it up."

Based on reporting from Standard Football.