Speaking recently on his Ask Ornstein YouTube show, David Ornstein provided an update on some of the rumours during the summer transfer market, and in particular, about Wolverhampton Wanderers’ interest in Arsenal’s Ainsley Maitland-Niles.
Since making his Arsenal debut as a 17-year-old back in 2014, Maitland-Niles has gone on to make 101 appearances for the Gunners, scoring three goals and providing five assists along the way.
Last season, the £13.05 million-rated utility man made 20 Premier League appearances for Mikel Arteta’s side, over which he provided two assists and averaged a slightly underwhelming WhoScored match rating of 6.63/10.
However, despite featuring relatively regularly for the club last season, it was reported earlier in the summer that Maitland-Niles had been put up for sale by the north London club, who were said to be demanding a £30 million fee for the England international.
The Guardian then reported that Wolves were closing in on a deal for the Arsenal man, while Newcastle United were also interested in taking him away from the Gunners.
Although, Ornstein has recently stated that as far as he is aware, Wolves’ move for Maitland-Niles has progressed no further, as well as suggesting the odds on the likelihood of the 23-year-old actually making a move in the current transfer window.
He said: “[There’s] so much going on at Arsenal right now. We know that Maitland-Niles was the subject of a £15 million bid from Wolves that was rejected, and I don’t think that situation has moved on or changed. Some have described it to me as being in the balance, 50-50.”
Would you like to see Maitland-Niles become a Wolves player?
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TIF Thoughts…
From Ornstein’s comments, it would appear as if the journalist is of the belief that Maitland-Niles’ future is still very much up in the air at present, despite recent reports which suggest that Mikel Arteta is now unwilling to sell the player.
As such, we will have to wait and see if Wolves decide to go back in for Maitland-Niles before the transfer window closes.