Ainsley Maitland-Niles left Mikel Arteta in a state of fury during Arsenal's pre-season clash with Everton in the United States. The Hale End graduate made a second-half cameo as the Gunners waltzed away 2-0 victors following first-half goals from Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Jesus.
And, while the north Londoners were left with something to shout about as Edu's £45million signing continued his fruitful form, it was an afternoon to forget for Maitland-Niles. Granted the chance to impress in midfield, the 24-year-old attempted a customary pass out to Granit Xhaka.
The Switzerland international was left scrambling as he tried to retrieve Maitland-Niles' mishit effort before the ball rolled out for a throw-in. Xhaka was seen applauding his teammate's intention but the camera panned to Arteta, who was seen visibly livid.
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Maitland-Niles, who sees his contract at the Emirates Stadium expire next year, has faced an increasingly uncertain future of late after struggling to cement a role in the Spaniard's side. He joined AS Roma on loan in January in search of first-team football and has since returned to rebuild his chances of a future at Arsenal.
Speaking to club officials in January, Arteta explained that he and Maitland-Niles had reached a crossroads. He said: "Ainsley came to me and explained the reasons why he thought that the best thing for him in his career right now is to move away.
"He believes that the opportunity to move to Rome and working under Jose is a really good one. We already had this conversation in the summer and we decided to keep him at the club and assess the situation in December, but with the amount of minutes that he has played, he’s entitled to that opportunity.
"When a player feels that way and has a strong argument like he has, it’s very difficult to turn it away, so we decided to let him go and we wish him all the best."
But, despite seemingly intent on wanting to impress, Maitland-Niles may have got off on the wrong foot against Everton. With 12 months remaining on the England international's contract, he could - in theory - be worth more to Arteta this season over a short-lived cash injection.
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