Ainsley Maitland-Niles was left stunned at his first training session under Sam Allardyce with West Brom.
The ex-Arsenal star left his boyhood club on loan in 2021 in search for consistent minutes as he found himself with the relegation-threatened club for the final four months of the season.
While the introduction of the former England international couldn’t stop the Baggies from finishing 19th in the Premier League, Maitland-Niles certainly experienced a new way of working under Sam Allardyce.
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Finally getting to enjoy regular football in Ligue 1 with Lyon, the 26-year-old opened up about his brief but memorable stint with the now-Championship club in an interview with The Athletic.
“That was a shock at first — for the first couple of days, I was like, ‘Wow, I’ve never seen something like this before’, he laughs. “But he’s a good guy, he wants his team to do well. He obviously has a different method to go about it”.
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(Image: Getty Images)
Maitland-Niles’ stint at West Brom was the second of four loans he’s had during his career before moving to France, where he inked a four-year deal with Lyon last summer. It brought an end to the 20-year association he’s had with Arsenal that began when he was just six years old.
While he never went on to become a key member of the team, the love for the north London club will always remain as he admitted he’s rooting for them to pip Manchester City to the Premier League title this month.
(Image: PA)
“I’ll cherish it forever,” he said. “It’s my boyhood club, I still support them and look out for them. I’m hoping they are going to win the league this year. I’d love to see them do it. I have no envy in my heart at all.
“It’s a great thing to have grown up in such a great club, the way they taught us to play football and how to read the game over the years.”
(Image: PETER CZIBORRA/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
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Maitland-Niles – who’s played in six different positions for Lyon this season – said his loan spells with two ending in relegation “builds character” and has helped him to get to where he is now with his football career.
“That’s what builds character, it’s difficult. No one wants to go through that but unfortunately, I did and a lot of players went through it with me. It just helped me put perspective into my life,” he remarked.