Things may not be going entirely to plan for Ipswich Town, but teenage loanee Ainsley Maitland-Niles is happy with the progress he’s made personally during his temporary spell at Portman Road.
Saturday’s 0-0 draw at home to Cardiff means the Blues have scored just one goal in five games and have one win in 10 league matches, slipping from top of the Championship to their current 14th position in the process.
Arsenal youngster Maitland-Niles, 18, has played in all 14 of the Blues’ Championship games this season and has enjoyed his first taste of the second tier, even if results have not been entirely to his liking.
“At first I found it tough, I still do find it tough, but it’s a matter of getting over it and working hard for the team,” he said.
“I’m learning a lot more, I feel like I’m fitting in well and I think a lot of that’s down to the players and the manager.
“I’m happy to play any type of football as long as I’m on the pitch.
“I’ve probably improved most on my heading but I don’t mind, I just take it as it comes.
“It’s really important (to track back) because it’s that one moment you switch off and you’re 1-0 down.
“Hopefully the fans can keep behind us and we can come through with the three points.”
On Saturday’s game, the young attacking midfielder believes Ipswich did enough to win the contest but is convinced the long-awaited three points will arrive soon as long as the Blues keep their focus.
He said: “Championship games are always tough but I think we could have come away with more than a point. Unfortunately we didn’t but at least we had a point to come away with.
“It’s getting frustrating for all the players, the gaffer too, but we’ll keep plugging away and we’ll get out three points eventually.
“It’s about working hard for the whole 90 minutes and then we’ll get the three points we need. There were chances and we could have won 3-0 or drawn 2-2, but we didn’t concede or score and it’s one point.
“It’s a matter of everyone keeping trying and it’s going to come off. We need to work hard, stay focused, play hard and communicate well, all sorts of things, so sometimes it’s just a matter of one chance we have to take.”
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