‘Ainsley Maitland-Niles’ one of the most versatile player Arsenal has ever produced – Yes, we are talking about upcoming sensation. Ainsely Maitland-Niles can feature on both defensive as well as offensive side of the game. He can play as winger, midfielder and right-back.
Who is Ainsely Maitland-Niles?
Player Profile :
Full name: Ainsely Cory Maitland-Niles
Birth date: 29 August, 1997
Place of birth: Goodmayes, England
Height: 5’10”
Ainsely is emotionally attached to the club, joining Arsenal’s Hale End Academy at age of 6. When children are dreaming about becoming ‘heroes’ this guy had already started working for that feat.
At 17 years and 102 days he became the second youngest player to represent Arsenal Football Club in UEFA Champions League, when he came on as substitute for Aaron Ramsey at half time in their 3-0 victory against Galatasaray away from home on 9 December,2014.
He made his Premier League debut on 13 December,2014 (4 days after making his Champions League debut) replacing Alex-Oxlade Chamberlain in additional minutes as Arsenal comfortably secured 4-1 victory against Newcastle United.
“That was a life-changing moment,” he recalls talking to Arsenal official website.
“You see the players we train with step out on the field in front of 60,000 people and you just hear the roar as well when their name is called out. For that to be me, it put a huge smile on my face and I just had to thank my family and God for every opportunity I’d received.”
Arsenal announced last month, the promotion of Ainsely into the first-team setup. With Arsenal featuring in Europa League this season, it will be an golden opportunity for Maitland-Niles to prove himself against some of the established clubs in Europe.
“In that sense, playing Under-23s is really different to first-team football. Now, it’s about me using that experience, applying it to under-23 football, and also sharing those experiences with team-mates. It’s now my responsibility to show them what’s right from wrong and help them push on in their careers.“
Style of Play:
Mainland-Niles is someone who is a severe threat going forward but along with that he maintain his position to get involved into the defence when required. You don’t need to find Ainsely when he is playing because he is someone who will get automatically involved in the game. It sometimes seems ball finds him, he is someone who rarely disappear on pitch.
His maturity and understanding of play has grown immensely after his loan spell with Ipswich Town in 2015-16 season.
Maitland-Niles on his Ipswich loan spell (talking to www.arsenal.com):
“It was a great confidence boost, that’s for sure, It started very, very brightly. I didn’t get to play as much as I wanted to at the end of the season but I still got to play regularly in the Championship so I can’t be sad about it. It changed the way that I’m thinking now, and I’ve grown up as a person and a player too.”
“While I was at Ipswich I was always working on my shooting, cutting in from both sides and working on producing a deadly shot with both feet, so I probably score more goals with my left foot these days!”
Ainsely Maitland-Niles is a leader on as well as off the pitch. He is someone who is shouting and screaming as a leader. Describing his ability as ‘leader’ here is what he had to say:
“I have worked on my leadership a bit but I’ve always been a talker on the pitch because I think communication is key, You need to be talking to players and telling them what you need from them. They tell me what they need from me at all times, so it’s only right that I repay the favour. I do the same in senior football too. When I first made the step up to the first team, I thought I was going to be a bit quiet, but I’ve grown into the atmosphere and now I’m just myself around all the players. I’m now just laughing and joking around with them on the coach to games.”
There are many potential superstars coming up the ranks at Arsenal and Ainsely’s close friend Alex Iwobi is now a regular in first team for the ‘Men in Red & White’. He will be hoping to get to that feat this season. Talking about his potential-he’s got what it takes to perform at highest level, that quality, ability and even his constant hard-working strength. It will be interesting to see ‘How’ Ainsely Maitland-Niles will perform this season. Will he become another superstar out of Hale End Academy?
