Arsenal and Roma will hold talks near the end of the season over a permanent transfer for Ainsley Maitland-Niles following the Hale Ender’s loan move, according to football.london.
The Giallorossi sought to sign Maitland-Niles on a full-time basis in January, but the Serie A side could not afford the deal at the time. Arsenal were open to sanctioning his exit in the winter sales, and pushed for an obligation to buy set on his number of appearances made.
The Gunners product instead left England for Italy and to join Jose Mourinho’s side for the remainder of the campaign for only an initial loan fee. But talks between the north London and Rome hierarchies will likely occur at the tail end of the season to reassess his situation.
Arsenal set for Roma talks to debate permanent Ainsley Maitland-Niles exit
Maitland-Niles jumped at a chance to join Roma from Arsenal during the January transfer window. Corriere dello Sport also reported at the time that he agreed on a €2.5m-a-year (£40k-a/w) contract in preparedness for the Giallorossi exercising any option to purchase.
But Arsenal wanted €17m (£14m) to sell, although would have settled for €15m (£12.5m). Roma, meanwhile, only valued Maitland-Niles at €10m (£8.5m), hence talks over a move ending with a straight loan. Yet the Giallorossi are unlikely to bid much more this summer.
While the 24-year-old started five of the first six Serie A games he was eligible for, he has since failed to feature in four. Mourinho has also overseen three wins and a draw without the five-cap England international. Maitland-Niles only helped to win two from six games.
Arsenal, then, could struggle to convince Roma to pay a higher sum for Maitland-Niles, if they seek a permanent transfer. But 90min reported in January that a number of Premier League clubs also enquired into his situation. Yet the midfielder favoured moving to Rome.
So, even if Roma do not target a permanent transfer for the Arsenal product – who Peter Crouch calls ‘tremendous’ – the Gunners could still find a club keen to sign Maitland-Niles.
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