Arsenal man Ainsley Maitland-Niles is likely to return to the club this summer after failing to hit the mark on loan at Roma.
That’s according to Siamo La Roma, who say the Englishman is ‘not meeting expectations’ under Jose Mourinho.
They explain that Maitland-Niles ‘does not convince’ and has failed to be a ‘valid’ option for the Serie A side since joining in the January transfer window.
Maitland-Niles moved to the Italian club in search of the regular playing time that wasn’t on offer under Mikel Arteta at the Emirates.
Siamo La Roma explain that the 24-year-old was signed as he is known for his ‘tactical versatility’ and was expected to give Mourinho more options in his squad.
However, that’s now happened, with the player having failed to ‘provide any guarantees’ and was never a ‘real alternative’ to the players already there.
He did enjoy a positive start to life in Italy but now ‘sees little of the pitch’ and seems to have ‘lost a few positions’ in the hierarchy under Mourinho.
There’s still a hope that the Arsenal loanee can turn things around, but they are slim, and the man he was supposed to be a backup for, Rick Karsdorp, will be ‘condemned’ to play as many minutes as possible between now and the end of the season.
In short, the loan from Arsenal has not been anything near a success, and the chances of Maitland-Niles joining Roma on a permanent basis in the summer are non-existent at this point.
