Arsenal’s Maitland-Niles reminds critics he is not a natural defender

Makeshift Arsenal right-back Ainsley Maitland-Niles says that he is not a defender despite filling in admirably this season.

The 22-year-old has played all five Premier League games at right-back this season and weighed in with two assists.

The academy product has been thrust into Arsenal’s new-look defensive line with regular right-back Hector Bellerin still working his way back to fitness.

Unai Emery said in January that he was happy to rely on Maitland-Niles, but criticism has inevitably been thrown at the player, who has had to adapt his game to play in a defensive role.

Asked whether he expected to be moved from right-back when Bellerin regains his match fitness, Maitland-Niles told Sky Sports: “Only time will tell and of course I want to play as many games as I can.

“I want to stay in the team, but if the manager chooses to pick him over me, that’s something I will have to live with. I’ll just have to keep training and working hard so that I get picked instead.

“I’m a midfielder by trade, either central or on the wing, it’s all the same to me. I’m not a defender so I do get a lot of stick about my defending being poor, but it’s something I’m learning and have been learning for a couple of years now.

Unai Emery Hector Bellerin TEAMtalk

“It’s not going to come overnight. If I was a defender as a kid, and my defending was poor, I would understand where the criticism is coming from, but I’m trying my best for the team and for the manager.

“It’s not where I would choose to put myself in the team, as I’m an attacking player by trade. That’s all I can try to bring to the team. I’m still learning the defensive side, so when players are running at me, and they’re throwing skills at me, I’m still learning how to deal with that.

“It’s always nice to have one main position where you play, and everyone else gets to play in their main position, so hopefully it’s just a matter of time before I can do that too.”

Arsenal and Maitland-Niles are all set to face Eintracht Frankfurt tonight in the Europa League, but it’s the Champions League where the Gunners most definitely want to be.

“The Premier League is our main competition that we want to solidify our place in,” added Maitland-Niles.

“The top four would be brilliant, and anything outside of that would be unexpected for us.

“We’d been in the Champions League for so long, but we have to get back into it. That’s the main aim.”