[Albion] Ainsley Maitland-Niles

[BrickTamland]

As much as I love Alzate and think Molumby has great potential, neither answer the question that AMN answers - pace at full back. If we sign a left sided defender, I'm almost certain they'll be very quick, otherwise we may as well stick with Burn, Bernardo and March

Alzate and Molumby are fantastic options to be competitive in midfield though . Alzate particularly, with the rise of Lamptey and the signing of Veldman, doesn't feel like will end up at RB or RWB now and may be used in midfield more regularly.

Agreed, I’m hopeful with the cover we now have at RB (even with Montoya most likely off) that Alzate won’t feature there again unless there’s some serious injury crisis. Thought we played some of our best football last season with Alzate in the middle of the park (Newcastle away springs to mind) and hope we see more of that in a dynamic central midfield

 

[Pavilionaire]

Spurs, Wolves, also Newcastle and Leicester being talked about, so I don't see this one happening.

 

[JBizzle]

Agreed, I’m hopeful with the cover we now have at RB (even with Montoya most likely off) that Alzate won’t feature there again unless there’s some serious injury crisis. Thought we played some of our best football last season with Alzate in the middle of the park (Newcastle away springs to mind) and hope we see more of that in a dynamic central midfield

I agree, he was unlucky now to get the winner there too if I recall. One of the things I absolutely love about Alzate is his ability to take his time on the ball, use quick feet to get out of tough situations and pick a smart pass. He's the one I think will develop the most watching/training/playing with Lallana in the short term.

 

[BrickTamland]

I agree, he was unlucky now to get the winner there too if I recall. One of the things I absolutely love about Alzate is his ability to take his time on the ball, use quick feet to get out of tough situations and pick a smart pass. He's the one I think will develop the most watching/training/playing with Lallana in the short term.

I feel he brings something very different to the centre of the park (assuming Lallana plays a little further forward). Think him, Molumby, Bissouma, Davy and Stephens all offer something different from each other which suits Potters desire to play multiple systems even in the same game. Saying that there probably is potential for one of those to leave (possible even someone like Gross, as much as I like him).

 

[Johnny RoastBeef]

I'm hopeful we are still in the running for this signing. His performance in the cup final was very impressive and a clear signal that you don't need to be left footed to be a left sided fullback /wingback. Just ask Paolo Maldini or Cesar Azpilicueta, both equally adept on either wing.

Signing of AMN makes perfect sense if we are really serious about signing Darwin Nunez, a player who excells aerially, as his radar chart demonstrates.




To get the best from Nunez we need the capacity to provide consistent quality crosses from the wings.

As much as I like Dan Burn, his crossing is poor. But this is an area where Maitland-Niles is excellent.

I've used the Squawka.com comparison matrix and compared AMN to Andy Robertson, a player lauded for his crosses from the left.

https://www.squawka.com/en/comparison-matrix/?compare=39AdSEaTlJ2ByMSmmT032

Maitland-Niles stats for crossing accuracy per 90 outshine the Premier League team of the year Left back, Robertson, quite markedly.

AMN 33.3% - AR 19.5%

Almost twice as accurate.

Yes he is expensive, but at 22 he is still a baby, with massive potential to improve further.

If we factor in the possible signing of Nunez, who is only 21, then this makes perfect fiscal sense. Yes it would be a large investment, possibly £50m for the pair. But this outlay is comparable to our previous summer spending, and not beyond our budget.

Signing two of the biggest prospects in European football, in addition to the experience of Lallana and Veltman, this really would be some serious business.

 

[Justice]

Have we even been linked with the lad or is this a fans wish list?

 

[Bladders]

Have we even been linked with the lad or is this a fans wish list?

Yes, some hack tweeted it weeks ago

Though most seem to be overlooking he’s a right sided midfielder and has stated that’s where he wants to play , and seem to be shoehorning him into our LWB position cause he covered there for Arsenal a few times


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[The Fits]

I think Potter was actually asked a direct question about it in a post-match press conference.

 

[saafend_seagull]

Signing for wolves today. Not too bothered, especially if it damages molumbys chances


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Justice]

Signing for wolves today. Not too bothered, especially if it damages molumbys chances


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Yep £20m another target we missed out on.

 

[Sheebo]

Yep £20m another target we missed out on.

A) We weren’t necessarily in for him
B) Lots of clubs enquire about lots of players - we’re never gonna get them all - they can only join one club
C) I can’t think of anyone we’ve missed out on this window / even been linked with heavily and has gone elsewhere
D) We have made what looks like 2 decent signings already and many clubs haven’t - plus the window doesn’t shut for another month or so!

 

[Seasidesage]

Hugely overpriced IMO especially if he is going to play LB/LWB for the same money we could get Reguilon from Madrid who is frighteningly good from what i have seen at Seville and therefore probably has better options, but none the less is available for similar money. AMN is decent enough but not good enough to hold down a place in a bang average Arsenal side. If we are going to spend north of £20m on a FB he needs to have potential to become a £50m player.

 

[Hugo Rune]

https://www.skysports.com/amp/footb...lves-and-arsenal-in-talks-over-four-year-deal

Shame, but it’s a LWB we need to spend the money on, not someone who ‘may’ want to operate in the middle.

For deeper lying midfielders, we have Bissouma, Pröpper, Alzate, Stephens, Molumby and sky-scraper-tall Băluță.

You could argue there are others such as Groß and Lallana who could do a job too.

Jamal Lewis anyone?

 

[blue-shifted]

Yep £20m another target we missed out on.

It's not quite as easy as just giving Arsenal a £20m cheque and the player comes to us. It's not like going to a shop.

The player gets a say as well. He probably had 4 or 5 realistic options and he didn't choose us. No need for any negativity about it. Best of luck to the lad

 

[blue-shifted]

https://www.skysports.com/amp/footb...lves-and-arsenal-in-talks-over-four-year-deal

Shame, but it’s a LWB we need to spend the money on, not someone who ‘may’ want to operate in the middle.

For deeper lying midfielders, we have Bissouma, Pröpper, Alzate, Stephens, Molumby and sky-scraper-tall Băluță.

You could argue there are others such as Groß and Lallana who could do a job too.

Jamal Lewis anyone?

I agree that a specialist for the position would be preferable to a player who can play there but can go to multiple positions (fine prospect AMN is).

We're not a club short on decent options for any of the positions AMN can cover, we're a little short on final ball quality from wide areas. This should be the focus of any transfer business we do. I'm still not convinced we'll make a purchase here unless we can find exactly the player Potter is looking for.

 

[Palacefinder General]

How do you find Will Smith in the snow?

Look for the fresh prints.

 

[The Fits]

Great signing for Wolves. They're building an amazing young team up there.

 

[crodonilson]

The moose reckons we were keen but never his first choice.

 

[portslade seagull]

Not signed for Wolves yet

 

[Easy 10]

Wolves will be pushing for Europe again, we can't offer that so it ain't gonna happen. Good luck to the lad though, I think he'll fit in very well there.