Has Ainsley Maitland-Niles done enough at weekend opponents West Brom to earn an Arsenal future?

Has Ainsley Maitland-Niles done enough at weekend opponents West Brom to earn an Arsenal future?

By Peter White

Thursday night’s Europa League exit may have all but ended Arsenal’s miserable 2020/21 campaign, but attentions must quickly turn back to domestic duty with a trip to West Brom ahead on Sunday evening. 

Tottenham’s defeat at Leeds on Saturday may have offered the Emirates faithful a small crumb of comfort, but three points for Marcelo Bielsa’s Yorkshiremen saw them leapfrog the Gunners, who now sit tenth and seven points off an unlikely top-six finish. 

A place in next season’s European competition should ultimately prove too tough an ask with just four games of the season left, but with a game in hand over Spurs, Mikel Arteta’s men need to keep fighting to the death. 

The Baggies - ten points adrift of safety - may be destined for an immediate return to the Championship, but boss Sam Allardyce likes nothing more than getting one over the biggest names in the business. And you can bet they’ll be fired up to the max for this one. 

One name the former England boss won’t be able to call on for the 7pm kick-off though is ineligible Arsenal loanee Ainsley Maitland-Niles, who headed north in a deadline-day loan move at the start of February. 

While unable to prevent West Brom’s destined relegation, the 23-year-old has shown glimpses of his potential away from north London, posing the question of whether he could prove to be a useful asset for Arteta next season. 

So as he prepares to watch on from the sidelines as the mouth-watering encounter unfolds, we consider whether he should be given a second chance, as well as what to expect from the game itself. 

Verdict on the Gooner’s Hawthorns spell

Keen to secure regular first-team football to boost his hopes of being selected for England’s Euro 2020 squad this summer, Maitland-Niles secured a last-gasp move to the Black Country after talks between Arsenal and the likes of Leicester and Southampton fell through. 

Having made his England debut last September against Denmark, the Gunners academy product was keen to remain on manager Gareth Southgate’s radar, and pick up minutes in his preferred position of midfield, rather than at full-back. 

Though he has clocked up 121 games in Arsenal red, boss Arteta was unable to guarantee him a starting berth this season, particularly in the middle of the park. The question now is whether or not Maitland-Niles has done enough to force the Spaniard’s hand? 

With 12 top-flight appearances for West Brom under his belt Maitland-Niles has established himself as a regular under Allardyce, who himself admitted recently he was surprised how determined the former was to kick on in midfield. 

“I said I can’t 100 per cent guarantee that is where you are going to play,” said Allardyce. “But I told him that is where he will start and that, like everybody else, his performances will determine whether or not he stays in that position and in the team. 

“His performances have grown over the last few weeks.” 

Arteta was served a gentle reminder of Maitland-Niles’ quality during West Brom’s 3-0 win over Southampton in April, where he displayed endless energy and intelligence to spearhead a rare win. 

Reports suggest that amid an Arteta clearout a permanent Emirates exit remains the most likely scenario for Maitland-Niles this summer, with Leeds suggested to be among his possible destinations. 

With fellow Arsenal youngster Joe Willock similarly impressing out on loan at Newcastle Maitland-Niles may feel he could have helped Arsenal avoid such a disappointing end to the campaign. 

But while he has done more than enough to prove he belongs in the Premier League, it seems the Goodmayes native’s 18-year stay with the club is almost at an end.

What to expect from Big Sam’s Baggies

West Brom are all but down, but rest assured under Allardyce - who has never before been relegated from the Premier League - they will fight until the very end in their bid for survival. 

While last season’s Championship runners-up have only served up five wins during the current campaign they remain the only side to have gotten the better of Chelsea under Thomas Tuchel in domestic competition. 

That hunger to topple a member of the ‘big six’ is only likely to be furthered in the wake of Arsenal’s European shortcomings, with Big Sam surely eager to compound the Gunners’ misfortunes. 

On paper the omens look good for Arteta’s men, with Allardyce having lost 17 games against Arsenal, only winning five and drawing seven. In addition Arsenal have won ten of 12 home Premier League games against the Baggies, last falling in 2010. 

Expect the visitors - who have a miserable goal difference of -34 - to adopt a largely direct game plan, with much of their play likely to come through tricky Brazilian attacking midfielder Matheus Pereira. 

Gabriel Martinelli and Kieran Tierney could be in contention to start as Arsenal look to recapture the sort of form that yielded a 2-0 success at Newcastle last week. 

Though many may argue there is little left to play for ahead of the summer, any momentum gathered could be crucial in spearheading a successful fresh start next term.

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