Mikel Merino is still getting used to the Premier League. Having moved from Osasuna to Borussia Dortmund, Merino already knows two types of football, but believes it’s a completely new step in England.
Speaking to Marca, the Newcastle United player was asked about the change, and pinpointed the fast pace and extra physicality as two things which set the Premier League apart, and the Bundesliga hasn’t made that change less noticeable.
Merino is Basque, so will always be of interest to Athletic Club Bilbao, and in Spain it was thought a move to the club was nailed on during the summer, but then Newcastle swooped in and got a deal done.
Marca asked Merino what made him choose Newcastle United over other options available: “The club wanted to have me and Benitez counted on me. A player wants to go where he really feels loved. Rafa is one of the main reasons for which I am here, and, above all, because the Premier is a very powerful league and in which I want to grow as a footballer.”
Merino knows he needs to listen to Benitez, who has plenty of Premier League experience, in order to get the most out of his Newcastle United stay: “He tells me that in the middle of the pitch you have to play one or two touches and see where everyone is placed, so I know they are going to come very close to me, that you do not have time to think, that you have to play very fast… And he’s right. I have only three games and can confirm that 
it is another pace. In everything he says, one has to listen to him because he knows what he is talking about. It will do me good.”
Benitez is aware of the limitations of his team, and how that should change the tactics. Newly promoted Newcastle may not play the type of football Benitez would prefer, but the aim is to play the right way depending on opposition.
Before the West Ham match, Newcastle had been working on pressing the opposition, and Merino told Marca: “It’s what we have to do because we don’t have the technical ability of Manchester City, United… or the top of the Premier. Therefore, we must have confidence in our teammates, work all as one and be a family.”
