Arsenal teammates joked about facing off – now they will at World Cup | OneFootball

Mikel Merino admits he’s joked with Arsenal teammate William Saliba about facing off against each other, with Spain to play France in Tuesday’s World Cup semi-final.

Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images

Arsenal duo Mikel Merino and William Saliba have been very important to their respective national teams in the World Cup so far, with Merino scoring the winning goals for Spain against Portugal and Belgium, and Saliba helping France to four clean sheets in his five appearances.

But only one of the two can progress to the World Cup final, as Spain take on France in the semi-final on Tuesday night.

Speaking to the Spanish media, Merino insisted he hasn’t spoken to Saliba during the World Cup, but the two have joked in the past about facing off as international opponents.

Photo by Lars Baron/Getty Images

“I haven’t spoken to him during the World Cup,” Merino confirmed. “But I did speak to him at Arsenal before, back when I was playing as a striker. We had a few jokes about a possible duel someday.”

That day has now almost arrived, despite the fact that Merino didn’t initially think he’d be playing at the World Cup at all. With his long-term injury absence at the start of 2026, it’s been a tough road to this point.

“Honestly, when I look back, I see myself with my foot up, my whole foot swollen and in pain, unable to get up to pick up a book and having to ask for help with absolutely everything,” Merino recalled. “Two months without being able to put my foot on the ground. They felt incredibly long.

“As I said before, simply being here (at the World Cup) was going to make me appreciate everything so much more. So you can imagine what this means to me.”

Photo by Alex Slitz/Getty Images

Saliba is expected to be available for France on Tuesday, but he was absent from training with the national team over the weekend. The defender is on a specific training programme to avoid aggravating his back injury.

David Raya and Martin Zubimendi will also be in the squad for the game, but the pair are yet to make any appearances at the tournament.

Photo by Mateo Villalba Sanchez/Getty Images