Ainsley Maitland-Niles has had something of a stop-start Arsenal career.

The Gunners midfielder is a versatile presence who can play in a variety of positions, including on both flanks and at full-back.

But he has struggled to nail down a place in Mikel Arteta’s starting XI this season and has made just five Premier League starts.

That comes after the 2019/20 season in which he made 20 Premier League appearances and it now appears that he could be set to leave the Emirates on loan.

The 23-year-old has previously forced his way into Gareth Southgate’s England squad, winning three caps, but he is now set to seek regular first-team football away from north London.

The Athletic’s David Ornstein reports that West Bromwich Albion are pushing to sign Maitland-Niles before Monday’s transfer deadline.

He is also said to be attracting interest from a top-four club, though they are not named.

The Baggies would like him to bolster their squad as they fight against relegation but Arsenal are said to hold reservations over sending him to a club with such a different style of play.

GIVEMESPORT’S Harry Sherlock says…

Maitland-Niles should be playing regularly but he has been forced down the pecking order.

The form of Bukayo Saka has meant that picking the former is essentially impossible, given Saka’s four goals in six games from the right wing.

Thus, a loan move makes sense for Maitland-Niles.

Going to West Brom would expose him to a new style of play but it would also give him the chance to get on the pitch on a regular basis, and that is exactly what he needs.

Of course, you can understand Arsenal's reservations - they sent Gnabry on loan to West Brom in 2015 and he hardly featured.

They then sold him to Werder Bremen and he emerged as one of the top talents in the Bundesliga, earning a move to Bayern Munich.

Still, if Maitland-Niles has any aspirations of making the England squad for the European Championships, this move needs to be sanctioned.