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Ainsley Maitland-Niles: 2019/2020 Performances

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RacingPhoton

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Why thank you. I'll definitely keep that in mind. Pffft... The point of me doing so was to correct your belief that he's not a winger. He was always a winger not a CM!!! Now though, he sees himself as a "midfielder", and that to him is either CM or winger! End of!!

And who cares if he was never a defender. He's a f**king winger! Dropping down to play full back or wing back isn't some crazy farcical move like trying to play a striker like Auba at CB! I'm sure you praise Saka what he's showing as a LB. If that was Maitland-Niles, I'm your you'd be praising him. But since he's average at best, you decide to sweep the last two years under rug as if it never happened.

After the draw against Chelsea, Rio Ferdinand praised for Matinelli. What he said can easily be applied to Maitland-Niles. From 0:52-1:33, especially the last seven seconds. "You play where you can get into the team and then show your quality and then do you deserve to play there (favored position)."
AMN did have his share of good games. But he also had a bunch of howlers because he was never trained to do that job. Being a winger and covering for RB is one thing. But to be an outright RB is a different thing. Yes. Saka did exceptionally well. Doesn't mean everyone has to do it. If AMN could play the cup games and prove his mettle in CM role, why not groom him for that role? He is just 22.
 

lazyfreak

Active Member
AMN did have his share of good games. But he also had a bunch of howlers because he was never trained to do that job. Being a winger and covering for RB is one thing. But to be an outright RB is a different thing. Yes. Saka did exceptionally well. Doesn't mean everyone has to do it. If AMN could play the cup games and prove his mettle in CM role, why not groom him for that role? He is just 22.
What do you mean by "doesn't mean everyone has to do it"?? What? Show a little bit of desire? Because that's all is required really. It's part of the reason why I bring up the fact that dropping down to full back or wing back from being a winger isn't much of a transition. Just show some damn desire and passion but instead he went public with his "I'm not a defender" crap.

Look at the desire that Martinelli for example shows when he plays on the wing. Take the draw against Chelsea for instance. He not only gave protection for Saka but a lot of times tracked back to the point he was behind him as if he was the full back. Rio Ferdinand touched on that in that clip I posted. Showing some desire goes a long way! The way I see it, him saying he's a not a defender has put a permanent stain on his image, or at least it has as an Arsenal player.

As for the idea of getting him to prove his mettle in CM... Why bother? His nonchalance alone isn't something you want in the middle of the park.
 

Moleque

Active Member
Wow. Cleverly quoting half the statement. You should work as a journalist. He follows it by saying he was never a defender. He never played in defensive roles as a teenager.
I believe he was responding to your comment about "not being sure where you got winger from", but hey, pick and choose to fit your agenda, right?
 

RacingPhoton

Established Member
What do you mean by "doesn't mean everyone has to do it"?? What? Show a little bit of desire? Because that's all is required really. It's part of the reason why I bring up the fact that dropping down to full back or wing back from being a winger isn't much of a transition. Just show some damn desire and passion but instead he went public with his "I'm not a defender" crap.

Look at the desire that Martinelli for example shows when he plays on the wing. Take the draw against Chelsea for instance. He not only gave protection for Saka but a lot of times tracked back to the point he was behind him as if he was the full back. Rio Ferdinand touched on that in that clip I posted. Showing some desire goes a long way! The way I see it, him saying he's a not a defender has put a permanent stain on his image, or at least it has as an Arsenal player.

As for the idea of getting him to prove his mettle in CM... Why bother? His nonchalance alone isn't something you want in the middle of the park.
Why do you say he was nonchalant? He played in the role for such a long period. And he clearly said that he is trying hard. It just didn't work out well for him. You cannot blame him for not trying. If he didn't try, no manager would have continued playing him there. It was clear that he tried his best. It just didn't work out in that position. He went public about it after people were blaming him for his mistakes. His response was he never trained to be a defender in his life and so he was still learning to adapt to the role. Yet again, you have read some half baked report on his interview.
Martinelli is already a good dribbler. Him playing CF or on the wing is not same as transitioning from attacking to defensive role. Doing defense as a full time role is different from covering for a full back. Even Kolasinac's game is very different when playing wing back in a three at the back formation compared to playing full back in a 4 3 2 1 formation. He is complete **** in the latter. If it is so hard for someone who grew up playing that role, how can you expect it to be simple for a 22 year old who trained in a different role?
Maybe instead of being ruthless on a kid who played in the wrong position for the team, we should be showing the ruthlessness on grown ups who do **** all while playing in their own position for years?
 

Tom349

Active Member
have we heard anything about the status on Ainsley? He did a very good job imo, but is now left out in the cold? Is he injured?

Ive got an inkling that he is working away behind the scenes and will eventually be given an opportunity by Arteta once he has put in the right amount of work and the opportunity opens up for him. Reason for this inkling is Ceballos was left out of a few squads once he had recovered from his injury and on his return has shown improvement when it comes to doing the basics like passing instead of dribbling and limiting the amount of time he spends on the ball by taking needless touches. AMN is a similar player in this regard so hopefully its a case of learning and not of disciplining and lack of faith.

I feel the use of Sokratis at right back instead of AMN against Olympiakos adds weight to my theory. If you want to teach players certain habits then you don't want to confuse that message by playing them elsewhere and rather have them focus on the one goal.
 

Wryer

Well-Known Member
It's the really an odd one. He was doing fairly well. And given Arteta's courage in using the talented young ones, AMN's situation is really quite perplexing. Could be some tactical indiscipline, training effort or even something he said.
 

MutableEarth

Reiss' Dad
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It's the really an odd one. He was doing fairly well. And given Arteta's courage in using the talented young ones, AMN's situation is really quite perplexing. Could be some tactical indiscipline, training effort or even something he said.
I think he may have doubled down on not being a RB, which - while I understand - it's not exactly a good precedent. Think he might be gone in the Summer, but I hope that's not the case and he can make a late surge in the back end of this season.
 

darkgunner

Well-Known Member
It's the really an odd one. He was doing fairly well. And given Arteta's courage in using the talented young ones, AMN's situation is really quite perplexing. Could be some tactical indiscipline, training effort or even something he said.

I think Arteta's done him dirty on this one. He didn't deserve to be dropped really. Bellerin has had a some very good passages of play since his return, but I wouldn't say he's been a class apart overall.
 

LasseD

Member
How many times has Ainsley been played in CM in his entire Arsenal career? I don't think I've seen it happen more than maybe once or twice.
 

The_Playmaker

Established Member
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How many times has Ainsley been played in CM in his entire Arsenal career? I don't think I've seen it happen more than maybe once or twice.

From what I remember:

Southampton away as a holding midfielder, good performance.
Ostersunds away in a double pivot alongside Elneny, average performance.
Away at Old Trafford alongside Xhaka - MOTM

Its not even about AMN being an amazing passer, or playmaker. I think he is better at passing and dribbling than given credit for, but its all about the athleticism he could add to the midfield.

Our midfield is so slow. Slow to the extent that you do not even need to be fast to run past it.

Guendouzi, Ceballos, Xhaka, Ceballos, Torreira (over long distances) are all SLOW. If you pair any of them with AMN it instantly speeds up the midfield and covers the other midfielder.
 

Underhill

Active Member
I think Arteta's done him dirty on this one. He didn't deserve to be dropped really. Bellerin has had a some very good passages of play since his return, but I wouldn't say he's been a class apart overall.
It must be an issue with his attitude or similar. Or just a decision we are gonna sell him to fund other transfers. I doubt he is dropped purely due to his performance.
 

Oxeki

Match Day Thread Merchant
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Country: Nigeria

Player:Saliba

The thing that will hold him back is his attitude. Arteta came in and immediately made AMN one of the most important players of the team, yet he wants to play in midfield neglecting the fact that the best way he could have gotten game time in the time. Look at TAA, he's a midfielder that was asked to play in RB by klopp, yet TAA went about it with diligence. Didn't complain. Now he's probably the best RB in the world
 

Oxeki

Match Day Thread Merchant
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How many times has Ainsley been played in CM in his entire Arsenal career? I don't think I've seen it happen more than maybe once or twice.
Exactly, he's played under 4 managers, yet those managers has had multiple opportunities to play him consistently in midfield, but have chose not to. That should tell you something. He's not going to make it here IMO
 

MutableEarth

Reiss' Dad
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From what I remember:

Southampton away as a holding midfielder, good performance.
Ostersunds away in a double pivot alongside Elneny, average performance.
Away at Old Trafford alongside Xhaka - MOTM

Its not even about AMN being an amazing passer, or playmaker. I think he is better at passing and dribbling than given credit for, but its all about the athleticism he could add to the midfield.

Our midfield is so slow. Slow to the extent that you do not even need to be fast to run past it.

Guendouzi, Ceballos, Xhaka, Ceballos, Torreira (over long distances) are all SLOW. If you pair any of them with AMN it instantly speeds up the midfield and covers the other midfielder.
Debut vs Galatasaray, vs West Ham couple of seasons back, 2nd half vs Cologne in which his interception started the attack that led to a goal.

It's a double-edged sword for me. Part of me thinks he should suck it up and play RB if he wants to stay at Arsenal, but another part of me believes he will never be a great right back and he's better off going somewhere to be a midfielder - a position where he can actually fulfil his potential. It's not a Trent situation for me either - Trent suits RB, AMN just doesn't IMO and never has (and I don't understand why people - including coaches - see him there either :lol:).
 

Camus

Active Member
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have we heard anything about the status on Ainsley? He did a very good job imo, but is now left out in the cold? Is he injured?
Most people assume it's because he's made it clear he's not happy playing at RB. The fact we signed an injured average RB and have frozen him out makes me suspect he's kicked up a bit of a fuss for it to get to this stage. He probably sees that he's no longer a teenager and going into his 3rd season and 3rd full time manager as a RB. Probably feels he's going to be type cast for the rest of his career if he doesn't do something soonish.

I wouldn't be adverse to letting him go in the summer. By then he'll be the same age as Iwobi was when we cut or losses with him and I honestly think he's shown less promise than Iwobi, played a lot less games for us as well.
 

Impact

Established Member
Debut vs Galatasaray, vs West Ham couple of seasons back, 2nd half vs Cologne in which his interception started the attack that led to a goal.

It's a double-edged sword for me. Part of me thinks he should suck it up and play RB if he wants to stay at Arsenal, but another part of me believes he will never be a great right back and he's better off going somewhere to be a midfielder - a position where he can actually fulfil his potential. It's not a Trent situation for me either - Trent suits RB, AMN just doesn't IMO and never has (and I don't understand why people - including coaches - see him there either :lol:).

Why doesn't AMN suit right back?
 

MutableEarth

Reiss' Dad
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Why doesn't AMN suit right back?
Not great at defending wide areas, doesn't screen as well as actual full-backs. Not a great crosser of the ball, he's OK at it but compared to Trent he's OK. He's decent 1v1 but his body shape when facing up a winger sells him short. I don't think he attacks well as a full-back either, tends to get boxed in quite a lot, and it is fortunate for him that he's a decent dribbler so he hasn't been completely terrible when attacking from there.

In contrast, when he's defending more central, he's much more confident and better poised. When dribbling in central areas of the pitch, he's much more able to create space to exploit. He's able to play a quicker short passing game, and due to being less on the fringes of the game is more likely to stay switched on. The only reason IMO that people think he's better as a full-back is because he's fast. I accept that someone with his type of game (technically speaking) would be ideal there, but I've never thought it to be a good use of his abilities nor have I thought it to be a role that mitigates the less strong areas of his game. IMO, he is far more suited to a #8 role, where he is able to operate with more movement, variety and involvement with the game.

It's not surprising that his decent run as a full-back just before dropping off the scene came when Arteta basically inverted his role and he saw most of the game in central areas of the pitch. Because that's where he is suited.
 

LasseD

Member
From what I remember:

Southampton away as a holding midfielder, good performance.
Ostersunds away in a double pivot alongside Elneny, average performance.
Away at Old Trafford alongside Xhaka - MOTM

Its not even about AMN being an amazing passer, or playmaker. I think he is better at passing and dribbling than given credit for, but its all about the athleticism he could add to the midfield.

Our midfield is so slow. Slow to the extent that you do not even need to be fast to run past it.

Guendouzi, Ceballos, Xhaka, Ceballos, Torreira (over long distances) are all SLOW. If you pair any of them with AMN it instantly speeds up the midfield and covers the other midfielder.

Thanks - I watched the Man Utd match - I do remember him turning in a good performance.

Theoretically, I do like a player of his physique and drive in CM, but...

Exactly, he's played under 4 managers, yet those managers has had multiple opportunities to play him consistently in midfield, but have chose not to. That should tell you something. He's not going to make it here IMO

This is my worry. Whatever you think about Emery, he saw the same thing in AMN that Wenger and Arteta did - that AMN's probably not cut out to play CM consistently.
 

#254

Well-Known Member
Not great at defending wide areas, doesn't screen as well as actual full-backs. Not a great crosser of the ball, he's OK at it but compared to Trent he's OK. He's decent 1v1 but his body shape when facing up a winger sells him short. I don't think he attacks well as a full-back either, tends to get boxed in quite a lot, and it is fortunate for him that he's a decent dribbler so he hasn't been completely terrible when attacking from there.

In contrast, when he's defending more central, he's much more confident and better poised. When dribbling in central areas of the pitch, he's much more able to create space to exploit. He's able to play a quicker short passing game, and due to being less on the fringes of the game is more likely to stay switched on. The only reason IMO that people think he's better as a full-back is because he's fast. I accept that someone with his type of game (technically speaking) would be ideal there, but I've never thought it to be a good use of his abilities nor have I thought it to be a role that mitigates the less strong areas of his game. IMO, he is far more suited to a #8 role, where he is able to operate with more movement, variety and involvement with the game.

It's not surprising that his decent run as a full-back just before dropping off the scene came when Arteta basically inverted his role and he saw most of the game in central areas of the pitch. Because that's where he is suited.
I don't understand why he made a fuss about playing at RB then when he was basically an inverted MF defending the right side of the pitch!
 
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