Official | Ainsley Maitland-Niles joins Lyon

Ainsley Maitland-Niles (25) has officially joined Olympique Lyonnais and signed a four-year deal with Les Gones, the Ligue 1 side have announced. The 5-time England international was a free agent following the expiry of his contract with his formative club Arsenal. Maitland-Niles spent last season on loan at Southampton where he took part in only 22 Premier League games. “AMN” is the first English player to sign for Olympique Lyonnais. Maitland-Niles will reunite with former Saints teammate Duje Ćaleta-Car as well as with Alexandre Lacazette, his teammate at Arsenal.

𝙄𝙩’𝙨 𝙩̶𝙚̶𝙖̶ 𝙊𝙇 𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚 🦁🔴🔵

Welcome @MaitlandNiles 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 pic.twitter.com/fzYJjeQdE9

— Olympique Lyonnais (@OL) August 7, 2023

Given the monitoring of their transfer activity this summer by the DNCG – French football’s financial watchdog, Lyon have been mostly compelled to bolster their squad with loanees and free agents. According to L’Équipe, Maitland-Niles has been brought in to fill in the defensive midfield role, although he is used to playing as a right-back or a right-sided midfielder. The Englishman is Lyon’s fourth signing of the summer after Ćaleta-Car, Sochaux midfielder Skelly Alvero and Club Brugge right-back Clinton Mata. “I am very happy to sign here”, Maitland-Niles said.“If I had been told at the age of 6 that I would one day be at Olympique Lyonnais, I could never have imagined it! I absolutely had to seize this opportunity.”

GFFN | Bastien Cheval