Arsenal have revealed that Merino is struggling with a bone injury which is understood to be a fracture in his foot.
The Spaniard he will go under the knife to address the issue after he missed Arsenal’s 4-0 win at Leeds over the weekend and the EFL Cup victory over Chelsea on Tuesday night.
Arteta clarified at Elland Road that he thought Merino would be out for “four months” and now his father, Miguel, has opened up on the injury which is quite rare in football.
“Despite the problem, he’s accepting the situation,” he said.
“Injuries never come at a good time and a player has to be prepared for whatever comes. It’s tough, but we have to look on the bright side. There are much worse injuries than this one.
“There’s uncertainty because the recovery time isn’t well understood as there’s no history of this type of injury.
“It’s a stress fracture. It’s not an injury to the toes, it’s a bit more internal.
“It’s an injury that isn’t very well documented. There are many doubts regarding his recovery.”
After spending £250m across eight players in the summer, Arsenal have a squad strong enough to deal with Merino’s absence. But, with his injury timeline being uncertain there is a chance that he does not return until next season.