Former Gunner admits he’s happy playing football again at new club | OneFootball

Former Arsenal academy graduate and first-team starter Ainsley Maitland-Niles has revealed he’s finally happy playing football again under his new manager at Lyon.

Ainsley Maitland-Niles made headlines with a last-minute goal at the weekend, converting a 105th-minute penalty to secure a 4-3 win for Lyon over Brest. The team had trailed 3-1 until fellow former Gunner Alexandre Lacazette pulled a goal back in the 70th minute.

Lacazette won the late penalty for his side, putting his body on the line as he was forced off injured after the incident. But after a lengthy delay for the striker to receive treatment, Maitland-Niles stepped up to score the latest goal in Ligue 1 in the 21st century.

26-year-old Maitland-Niles has had a turbulent time with Lyon since his permanent transfer to the club in August, and that’s something the player himself has never denied.

Maitland-Niles had been critical of his former Lyon boss Fabio Grosso, who supposedly didn’t even talk to the ex-Arsenal man once.

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“[Not playing] wasn’t new for me,” Maitland-Niles said (via GFFN). “He didn’t even know me as a person. He never asked me how I felt, or what I wanted. I stayed calm and I worked. He left before we even had a conversation.”

But things are evidently different now, with the player now claiming he’s finally happy again.

“Since the manager (Pierre Sage) arrived, I’m happy playing football again and get up in the morning thinking, ‘Cool, I have training’.”

Over the course of the entire season so far, Maitland-Niles has made 23 appearances, and 17 starts. But 18 of the appearances and 14 of the starts have come under Sage, who only joined at the end of November.

Lyon’s performances as a whole have been much better under the new boss, with the team rising from 18th in Ligue 1 to their current position of seventh. Sunday’s win over second-place Brest was particularly impressive, especially given the circumstances of the comeback.

Maitland-Niles looks to be back to his best, and he’s enjoying himself on the pitch again.