Ainsley Maitland-Niles says Mikel Arteta convinced him to stay at Arsenal after making him realize he was not yet showing his full potential.
The 23-year-old was the subject of intense transfer speculation throughout the summer, with Wolves submitting an offer in excess of £20 million ($26m) for the Arsenal academy product.
Arteta was always adamant he wanted Maitland-Niles to stay, however, and pointed to the fact that he started him in both the FA Cup semi-final and final as an example of his faith in the youngster – but that did not stop the speculation and for a time it looked like a move to Wolves was a real possibility.
Ultimately Maitland-Niles opted to resist the advances of the Midlands outfit, however, and says it was a chat with his manager that convinced him to stay put.
“There was a lot of speculation going around, but I chose to stay at the club I love,” he said. “I am happy with my decision, and I am sure the manager is happy that I stayed as well.
“It was about the manager having faith in me and him letting me know what’s going on and the situation. He did that and everything was fine in the end.
“He just installed a lot of confidence in me that I had in myself, but maybe I didn’t know how to bring out. He has helped me do that. We work well as a team together, and he knows how to get the best out of me, and now I am learning to get the best out of myself more regularly now. I can only thank him along the way and carry on the run of form we have had.”