Mikel Merino has turned this Nations League break into a striking return from the bench, with three goals and one assist in four matches and just 109 minutes played. Spain have also leaned on substitutes in a big way, with six of their 12 goals in the first four matchdays coming from players off the bench.

Merino's impact off the bench

The clearest example came against Croatia in Split, when Spain won 2-1 on the fourth matchday and Merino scored both goals after coming on in the second half. That was the kind of intervention that changes the shape of a game without needing a full night on the pitch.

OptaJose, quoted by Relevo, said Merino has scored six goals with Spain in 16 official matches after coming off the bench from the start of 2025. The same account added that he is the player who has scored the most goals as a substitute for a European national team since then, and that he has seven substitute goals under Luis de la Fuente, more than any other player in Spain's side.

Spain's bench is doing real work

Spain's run has been tidy as well as productive. Europa Press said they have gone 42 consecutive matches without defeat, with the last eleven ending in victory, though that wider run is separate from Merino's immediate surge. The more direct point is the scoring split: half of Spain's goals in this Nations League window have come from substitutes.

Merino's own record under Luis de la Fuente is now hard to ignore in the same context. He has 15 senior goals for Spain, seven of them as a substitute, and three of his six assists have also come from the bench. That is not the profile of a player merely filling minutes. It is a player Spain are actively using to tilt matches late.

The club side adds another layer, too. Relevo says Merino has 16 goals and 8 assists in 85 matches for Arsenal, which fits the sense that his end product is showing up in dangerous areas rather than in low-value buildup. Spain go into the rest of the international calendar knowing they have a late-game scorer in reserve, and that is already shaping results.

Written by Daniel Hartley with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 2 outlets. How we work →