Leeds United and Crystal Palace are hoping to sign Arsenal’s Ainsley Maitland-Niles this summer, according to reports.
The English midfielder joined West Brom on loan in January after falling down the pecking order at Arsenal.
He’s played an important role recently as West Brom have started to pick up some wins in the Premier League.
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They secured a brilliant 5-2 victory over Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, before beating Southampton 3-0 last time out.
Maitland-Niles played a full 90 minutes in both of those wins and also starred as they took all three points against Brighton in February.
It looks like his mature performances in the top flight are getting him noticed.
According to the Mirror, Leeds and Crystal Palace are now leading the race for his signature.
They see Maitland-Niles as a great player to bolster their respective midfields in the summer transfer window.
It’s previously been revealed that the 23-year-old is ‘expecting to leave Arsenal’ in the coming months.
He sees no real route to the first team, with Thomas Partey and Granit Xhaka preferred in midfield.
Leeds and Palace are ready to capitalise on that situation by launching bids.
Maitland-Miles could form a solid partnership with Kalvin Phillips in midfield at Elland Road.
His versatility would also make him an attractive signing for Leeds boss Marcelo Bielsa.
He can operate in central midfield or as a full-back on either side of defence.
However, Maitland-Niles’ preferred position is in midfield. Mikel Arteta’s reluctance to play him there has supposedly caused tension between the player and his boss, leading to rumours of an Emirates exit.
Palace will rival the Whites if they bid for Maitland-Niles.
The Eagles are prepared for a big summer of change, with many first team players expected to leave.
They could offset some of those departures by bringing Maitland-Niles to Selhurst Park.
The Arsenal academy graduate has previously been the subject of interest from Wolves.
They launched a £20million bid last year but saw it rejected. A move this year looks far more likely for Maitland-Niles.
French side Monaco are the final club thought to be interested in landing him.
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