Ainsley Maitland-Niles: Yutility

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Has no business starting ahead of Kolasinac or Monreal at LB.

 

[FreakySami]

There's plenty to suggest he's got a good future , yeah got utterly done in the first goal , where he left Moh went to press the ball and Moh just ran off him and that was it .

First goal, kosc had the block and the other centerback should have dealt with the lobbed cross. Yes he made an error by pressing but the goal was avoidable without him there

 

[NoOffense]

Wenger probably preferred AMN instead of Kola due to AMN's pace. On top of that Kola doesn't strike to me as a very 'smart' player. Probably the same result whichever you chose. For those who want to see AMN in the midfield I wouldn't hold my breath. It's weird that Wenger plays him in the flanks even in Cup and EL games but that could also be part of Wenger's masterplan to develop AMN into a world class CM but who knows what Wenger thinks...

 

[dashsnow17]

Do we reckon AMN could make the required step to playing DM in the first XI? He's composed, has good technique, excellent recoveries and is a pretty good tackler.

 

[dashsnow17]

That's if we ever deign to actually play with a designated DM of course.

 

[MutableEarth]

Do we reckon AMN could make the required step to playing DM in the first XI? He's composed, has good technique, excellent recoveries and is a pretty good tackler.

And crucially, he's an adept passer and technician.

 

[MutableEarth]

The passing passages between 1:25-1:32. Quick, sharp passing.

 

[Mrs Bergkamp]

You can see that's where his skills lie. His comfort in possession and the sharp passes between the lines, the athleticism he displayed throughout. He showed some signs of good awareness at points, but he just didn't get his positioning right over the 90 mins. Ended up giving himself too much to do. I don't think the 2nd goal was his bad personally, but the 1st goal could have been prevented if he switched on and I feel the same about the 3rd. It was Koscielny's man but if AMN was thinking ahead, he would have made a move to cover Koscielny earlier considering his captain had stepped up into midfield. Firmino was all alone.

Nonetheless, there was much to be encouraged about IMO. I just feel his skills would be much better suited in midfield right now. We need that athleticism in midfield, as well as that possession game. It's a perfect complement to any one of our midfielders currently. We can bring Kolasinac back into the fold and move AMN into midfield.

He's getting slammed by a few people but he was done by a lack of experience and gravitating towards his natural position. Failures by more experienced team mates especially Kos didn't help. For the first goal,yes he was up field but we need to be better higher up the pitch. Monreal missed his tackle, Xhaka was done by a turn and JW slipped allowing Liverpool to run at Kos. The second goal,he was on the attack again near the corner flag. I blame Kos more for being in no man's land. JW could have stayed with the runner too but at 51.08,there's a clip with Salah outnumbered 4 to 1. And he still scores. Cech might have saved the third. I'd like to see him in MF-if he can reduce his mistakes there,then the battle is on for the others to play with him as he's what we need most.

 

[MutableEarth]

 

[redanddread]

Has no business starting ahead of Kolasinac or Monreal at LB.

Better speed but caught out of position a few times and Liverpool exploited that. The kid seems way composed though. Like his style & presence. Think he'll be a good player for us. Could probably do with some good coaching if he's going to play in the back 4 or as wing back.

 

[nick gould]

Do we reckon AMN could make the required step to playing DM in the first XI? He's composed, has good technique, excellent recoveries and is a pretty good tackler.

Central midfield is pretty packed at the moment. He ain’t replacing Xhaka anytime soon. Xhaka is still developing and we paid a lot of money for him. Maybe Wenger wants another Lauren. Remember the guy who came to Arsenal as a central midfielder/ attacking central midfielder who ended up playing right and excelling in that position.

In the academy ranks we have Dasilva, joe Willock, Jeff, zalaelem.

 

[dashsnow17]

Looks like a DM to me.

 

[OSBK]

Anm biggest problem is wenger. Wenger is try to shoehorn him into a fullback position. The kid is a midfielder, I think he plays anywhere across. He is a talented player and if he gets a chance he could impress, he is a better midfielder than ox was but has the same issue ox did.

I get players will play whatever position to play and in no way do I condem that but wenger has to be more switched on and realise he could ruin this guys chance.

 

[dashsnow17]

I have no problem with him being played at full-back at this stage in his development actually. I would just like to see how he does on the right instead of the left.

Any academy player breaking through is something to be celebrated. We shouldn't take it for granted and credit must go to Wenger here.

If anything AMN's recent spell in the first XI and the involvement of the other youngsters this season has made more more perplexed as to why Chris Willock left for Benfica. Maybe someone who knows more about the machinations of our youth football could tell me precisely why he left, but I hope it doesn't come back to haunt us.

 

[Impact]

Wenger is giving Maitland-Niles the right exposure. Getting first team minutes in positions he is comfortable with will do him good long-term. He's building his confidence (not that I think he has a lack of such) and is learning to combine with his more experienced teammates. I'm happy for him to play this role - utility fullback - for the rest of the season and next. I already think he is a better footballer than both Bellerín and Kolašinac, thought I think both are better full-backs than him at this stage. He's getting better with each game.

Long-term, if we plan to play a 4-3-3, I think he has great potential to play the anchor role. It is very rare that you see a player that marries his physical attributes with his technical prowess. In fact, I struggle to think of many at the top level, perhaps Casemiro? Speaking of Arsenal specifically, we really need an anchor that is mobile (which Ainsley is) and that's why Xhaka has struggled. We also need an anchor that offers support to our build up and Ainsley can do that too. He has all the tools and looks to have the temperament as well. He is also very difficult to beat one-on-one and I don't think Salah for all his quality managed to do so once on Friday. Very excited by him and I think Wenger is too.

It should never be forgotten that Wenger gave him his debut in the CL at 17 in CM at perhaps one of the most hostile grounds in European football.

 

[Malky]

Has no business starting ahead of Kolasinac or Monreal at LB.

Against Liverpool I'd rather Maitland Niles started over Monreal at LB, Monreal's proved over the years that he struggles badly against quick, skillful wingers and Salah/Mane would of ruined him. Maitland Niles has done well for us at LB, I've been impressed so far.

 

[dashsnow17]

Wenger is giving Maitland-Niles the right exposure. Getting first team minutes in positions he is comfortable with will do him good long-term. He's building his confidence (not that I think he has a lack of such) and is learning to combine with his more experienced teammates. I'm happy for him to play this role - utility fullback - for the rest of the season and next. I already think he is a better footballer than both Bellerín and Kolašinac, thought I think both are better full-backs than him at this stage. He's getting better with each game.

Long-term, if we plan to play a 4-3-3, I think he has great potential to play the anchor role. It is very rare that you see a player that marries his physical attributes with his technical prowess. In fact, I struggle to think of many at the top level, perhaps Casemiro? Speaking of Arsenal specifically, we really need an anchor that is mobile (which Ainsley is) and that's why Xhaka has struggled. We also need an anchor that offers support to our build up and Ainsley can do that too. He has all the tools and looks to have the temperament as well. He is also very difficult to beat one-on-one and I don't think Salah for all his quality managed to do so once on Friday. Very excited by him and I think Wenger is too.

It should never be forgotten that Wenger gave him his debut in the CL at 17 in CM at perhaps one of the most hostile grounds in European football.

Would you trust him at DM over recruiting someone in? Here i'm a bit torn; I'd like to see AMN at DM but I also like the look of Denis Zakaria/Lucas Torreira for example. But on the flip side, I also like the look of Amadou Diawara and I think AMN could develop to be very similar to Diawara.

Do we recruit or do we develop from within?

 

[Big Poppa]

Why do people keep talking about long term as if it's guaranteed these players will stay here while we drop further away from the top to aid their development?

It's clear with AMN that;

1) He has the right blend of talent and maturity to handle first team football
2) He is not a left back
3) We have two very good, experienced specialist left backs either on the bench or out of position

Kolasinac is what, 24? If we see him as our long term first choice left back then why the **** are we playing a kid who's a midfielder in his position for such crucial games? Don't give me that "good for his development" crap. Good for his development is mastering the demands of the role he will play for most of his career as quickly as possible. We're just wasting time we don't have. This is post 2005 Wenger in a nutshell. Just bizarre.

 

[Impact]

Would you trust him at DM over recruiting someone in? Here i'm a bit torn; I'd like to see AMN at DM but I also like the look of Denis Zakaria/Lucas Torreira for example. But on the flip side, I also like the look of Amadou Diawara and I think AMN could develop to be very similar to Diawara.

Do we recruit or do we develop from within?

I would recruit a DM and keep Ainsley as deputy to Bellerín next year personally. Amadou Diawara is a very apt comparison, though Maitland-Niles is probably quite a bit quicker without giving up too much in the way of strength.

 

[dashsnow17]

I would recruit a DM and keep Ainsley as deputy to Bellerín next year personally. Amadou Diawara is a very apt comparison, though Maitland-Niles is probably quite a bit quicker without giving up too much in the way of strength.

Nzonzi to hold the fort for a couple of years, for example?