Arsenal outcast Ainsley Maitland-Niles completes loan move to Southampton

Southampton have completed the loan signing of Ainsley Maitland-Niles from Arsenal.

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The versatile 25-year-old has long been an outcast at the Emirates having failed to establish himself in the first-team under Mikel Arteta.

He has joined the Saints on a season long loan and they will have the option to buy the England international next summer when his Arsenal contract while have just a year let to run.

Maitland-Niles made his Arsenal debut all the way back in 2014, winning the FA Cup in 2020, but in the past few seasons has been unfancied under Arteta and has left on multiple loans in order to get more minutes.

He actually came close to joining Southampton in January 2021, only to join West Brom instead, and in the most recent winter transfer window he moved to Roma but struggled for game time under Jose Mourinho, though he did lift the inaugural Europa Conference League trophy at the end of the season.

‘Ainsley is at a good point in his career, with a lot of experience already, but he is also still a player with potential, and he is someone who can definitely help us,’ Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl said.

Capable of playing at both right-back and left-back, Maitland-Niles has previously stated his preferred position is in centre-midfield.

It has been a busy deadline day for the Saints, with veteran midfielder Oriel Romeu departing for Girona and defender Jack Stephens heading to Bournemouth on loan, with Nathan Redmond in talks to follow him.

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