Everton's long-awaited right-back signing Ainsley Maitland-Niles has been told he is not “a proper defender” by Arsenal legend Alan Smith, casting doubt on his place in the side for the upcoming match against his former club.
The 29-year-old joined Everton from Olympique Lyonnais for £4million on September 1, ending manager David Moyes' near 20-month search for a new right-back. Moyes had admitted in January that the club had been “actively looking for a right-back for over a year”.
Long Search for a Right-Back
Since that admission, long-serving captain Seamus Coleman retired after 17-and-a-half years at the club, and Nathan Patterson departed to Torino on deadline day. During the intervening period, Moyes deployed 6ft 6in central defender Jake O'Brien out of position to cover the role.
The situation was even raised by Prime Minister Andy Burnham, a lifelong Everton supporter, who said in August: “We need a right-back. Poor old Jake can't do another season at right-back. He's a good player, he's a great centre-back. Buy a right-back.”
Mixed Start at Everton
Maitland-Niles has featured in all six matches since signing, starting five in a row after coming off the bench to score a spectacular last-gasp equaliser against Manchester United on his debut. However, his place in the side has come under scrutiny after he was partly culpable in both Hull City's goals and Chelsea's opener in the 2-0 defeat that ended Everton's unbeaten record.
Club officials consider the player a bona fide defender given that over 150 of his career appearances have come in full-back berths, but Smith, who won two league championships with Arsenal plus the FA Cup, League Cup and European Cup-Winners' Cup, is not convinced.
Smith's Verdict
Speaking to the ECHO, the 63-year-old said: “He's a really nice footballer, Ainsley Maitland-Niles, but I've never seen him as a proper defender. With the chances he took and the mistakes that he made the other day against Hull, that shows you.
“He was like that at Arsenal, a really lovely footballer, but I don't think he thinks like a defender. So, David Moyes, knowing how he is, will be thinking, oh, are we going to go forward with this? I don't want to be harsh on him, because he's such a lovely player and he set up the goal for Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall. But yeah, we'll see on that one.”
Maitland-Niles joined Arsenal at the age of six and, despite loan spells at Ipswich Town, West Bromwich Albion, Roma and Southampton, remained on their books until moving to France in 2023. On whether he might miss out on a return to the Emirates Stadium, Smith added: “I don't know. I mean, David Moyes will be trying to keep things very tight and sitting deep. So, we'll see on that one, if he doesn't play, who will play? Perhaps someone more defensively minded.”
