Arsenal midfielder Mikel Merino has revealed how a simple, last-minute change of seats on Borussia Dortmund’s team bus likely saved his life during a terrifying bomb attack in Germany in 2017.
Merino, just 20 years old at the time, was travelling with his Dortmund teammates to the stadium for the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final against Monaco when three explosives packed with metal pins detonated as the bus passed a hedge.
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A large piece of shrapnel became deeply embedded in the headrest of the seat the Spanish midfielder would normally have occupied. However, because his legs were feeling tight, he had moved to a seat further forward.
“The seats in the front reclined, so I sat up there instead, and it may have saved my life,” Merino recalled in an interview with The Players’ Tribune. “I think I have an angel on my shoulder. I’m actually fortunate to be alive at all.”
Recalling the harrowing moments immediately following the explosion, Merino described a scene of overwhelming chaos, deafening noise, and thick smoke that left the vehicle nearly tipping over.
He recounted seeing blood on the floor and hearing the screams of panicked teammates before later heading to the hospital to support teammate Marc Bartra, who underwent surgery for a broken wrist.
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With doctors predicting a six-month recovery period for an injury occurring just four months before the World Cup, the emotional reality hit hardest when he shared the news with his wife, Lola.
“The doctor said, ‘six months’. I was too shocked to even feel sad. I just did the math in my head. The World Cup was four months away,” Merino said. “When I told my wife, Lola, that’s when I broke down. My brain already understood, but my heart needed me to say it out loud… I have to play. I will be at the World Cup, no matter what.”
