Banfield - We have high hopes for Merida

By Chris Harris

Fran Merida caused a stir on Friday night after marking his first
appearance on English soil with the goal of the game as a young
Arsenal XI beat Boreham Wood 4-0 at Meadow Park.

The teenager followed in the footsteps of Cesc Fabregas when he joined
Arsenal from Barcelona this summer. Judging by his swerving 25-yard
strike against the Ryman League side, Merida has the potential to be a
big success in England.

Neil Banfield, in charge of the side at Meadow Park, was full of praise
for Merida after his goalscoring debut. "Fran is 16 years of age, a
central midfield player, and we have high hopes for him," he told
Arsenal.com.

"He plays centrally and as we saw against [Boreham Wood] he's technically
very good, he understands the game well and he looks a very good young
player.

"I think the biggest challenge against a team like Boreham Wood is the
physical side, there is a bit of rough and tumble to those kinds of
games. Some of the lads we had in the side were 15 or 16, and they did
very well."

[Monday, August 07, 2006]