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Mikel Merino believes Rafa Benitez can turn him into a “more-complete footballer” after an impressive start to his Newcastle United career.

The 21-year-old Spaniard was excellent during the Magpies’ 3-0 victory over West Ham United on Saturday, controlling midfield and threading passes through to his team-mates.

Such a performance led Benitez to admit there are “similarities” between Merino and former World Cup winner Xabi Alonso, who the Newcastle manager signed while at Liverpool.

And Merino has promised that he will only improve, with the Spain Under-21 international explaining that his vision and range of passing are his key attributes.

“I like to give the passes to my team-mates because I think it’s the best way to win matches,” Merino, who has joined Newcastle from Borussia Dortmund on an initial season-long loan deal which contains a permanent-purchase clause, said of his playing style.

“Precise passes and to go forward, that is what I try. Sometimes you misplace passes because you take risks in order to give a good pass to someone in front.

“But when the pass is good, it creates a clear chance for our team so I try to give these passes.

“If I fail with half of it, then it doesn’t matter because I know the other half will be good chances.

“That’s what I try to do. I have to learn a lot from Rafa, from the league, I’m only 21, and I think I have a lot of things to improve.

“But by playing I will learn and I will become a more-complete footballer.”

(Image: Newcastle United)

Following the Magpies’ 1-0 defeat at Huddersfield Town, ex-Magpies boss Graeme Souness labelled Merino’s defending “a joke” after the Spaniard turned during the build-up to Aaron Mooy’s winner.

However, Merino insists he does not pay attention to such comments from pundits.

“I heard something but I don’t really give importance to it,” he replied.

Instead, the midfielder decided to focus on the positives following Newcastle’s first win of the season.

Experiencing the winning atmosphere at St James’ Park was something which Merino relished.

“I enjoyed this match a lot, of course, it was very important to get that first victory after two losses to begin with,” he added.

“It was important to win in front of our people. The main thing is we played as a team, we played together, and the things we are doing are in the right way so we have to keep playing, keep pushing and the wins will come.

“You cannot comprehend it [the nerves after two defeats] because no-one wants to lose, but what we have to do is forget the bad results, only think about the good things and the things to improve.

“It was really important to score the first goal. We needed to start the match in a good form, and in all the match the team were in a good way so we are really happy to get the win.

“We are lucky in this game because we win doing a great job and this is good for us to feel confident and to keep doing the things we are doing.

“It’s incredible [to experience winning at St James’ Park].

“It is incredible when you win because the crowd is really happy and in this game the crowd was really with the team, which is something we know we really need.”

The Magpies’ next match is not until Sunday week when they travel to Swansea City due to the two-week international break.

As a result, Merino - who will join up with Spain Under-21s for fixtures against Italy and Estonia - believes the Magpies playing can relax from the pressures of the Premier League and return even stronger.

“It was important to win before the two-week break. If you win now, then you have positivity. If you lose, then you have two weeks to think things over in your head and it is not nice,” he continued.

“Now we can relax, be more confident and come back even stronger.

“I am looking forward to enjoying the time with my national team, to spend time with my team-mates and to learn and communicate with them.

“It is a new generation and I am looking forward to enjoying this week.”