Dixon says ‘something’s not right’ with Arsenal man & Arteta, expects him to leave

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Ainsley Maitland Niles has struggled to make his mark under new Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta.

Lee Dixon has stated that ‘something’s not quite right’ with Ainsley Maitland Niles and Mikel Arteta behind the scenes, as he expects the Arsenal defender to ‘move on’, as he told The Handbrake Off Podcast.

Maitland-Niles last started a game for the Gunners in January when he played at right-back during Arsenal’s score draw against Sheffield United. 

He hasn’t featured in a matchday squad for Arteta since January, and despite his versatility, Arteta has opted to play other options in the middle of the park and at right-back.

Dixon shared how you cannot read too much into the current situation surrounding Ainsley Maitland Niles, but he believes the Arsenal man will be ‘concerned’ 

“We only see what we see on a Saturday,” Dixon told The Handbrake Off Podcast. “Most of the things that goes on with the team goes on behind closed doors. You don’t see what’s going on in training. How he [Maitland-Niles] trains. You don’t see his integration with the other players, so matchdays are completely false to make a judgment on how a player fits into the squad. 

“You can get away with it. You don’t always have to like the players that you are playing with. That’s pretty historic that you don’t need to be mates with everybody. So, I don’t know what’s going on behind the scenes with him and the coach.

“There’s obviously something not quite right and the fact that he hasn’t used him in those positions is something that would be a concern for him because he wants to play. He’s not getting in at right-back, right now. And he said that he wants to play in midfield and I think it’s just a matter of time before he moves on.” 

Maitland-Niles has filled in as a right-sided fullback, and at times on the left-hand side, for Arsenal given their problems, with both quality and injury in those areas in recent seasons. 

It seems as though that Maitland-Niles has to prove his manager wrong on the training field before he can enter his thoughts again because it is quite obvious that Arteta will stamp his authority down if he notices something wrong. 

At this moment in time, things are looking on the up for the North London club, and despite getting knocked out of Europe, they will be pleased that they still haven’t been beaten in the Premier League in 2020.