Ainsley Maitland-Niles has agreed a deal to sign for Ipswich Town on a season-long loan.
Youngster Maitland-Niles has been at the Emirates since 2003 and made his senior debut last season in the Champions League, against Galatasaray in Turkey.
This made him the club’s second youngest player to appear in the competition, only behind England international Jack Wilshere.
Other than the Champions League, he didn’t get much game time other than couple of appearances in Premier League and FA Cup, which Arsenal went on to win.
Now he has been given a chance by Wenger to get some first team action, in The 2nd Tier with the East Anglian club, Ipswich.
McCarthy said:
“I’m going to speak to him (Maitland-Niles) today and everything is fine, hopefully he will join us today … Ainsley is a good player but I hope the lads we have already got, the likes of Dylan Connolly – who was excellent in the under-21s last season – flourish.”
Ainsley Maitland-Niles broke into the U21 team during the start of the 2013/14 season. He signed his first professional contract in October 2014, and made his competitive debut two months later against Galatasaray, as Wenger tried to give him and his other youth players a chance to shine.
Next season, he will fight for promotion with the Blues at Portman Road, after a sixth place finish this season. They lost to eventual playoff champions and crosstown rivals Norwich City in the playoff semi-final.
