Ainsley Maitland-Niles Details Racial Abuse from German Fans as Arsenal Youth

Ainsley Maitland-Niles has provided details about racial abuse he received from some German fans during his days as a youth prospect for Arsenal. 

The 21-year-old Gunners midfielder recounted the unsavoury incident and also praised Manchester City winger Raheem Sterling for speaking out against racism and the way black players can be portrayed by sections of the press.

Remembering his own issues as a 12-year-old on Arsenal's books, Maitland-Niles said, per BBC Sport: "It hurts to talk about it but it is so important to get rid of it from the game."

Maitland-Niles also said he reported his own experience but that "nothing was done about it."

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The incident occurred when Maitland-Niles went to take a throw-in during an away fixture in Germany: "To me, responding to it is scoring a goal to put their team down. I only thought they were doing it because I was having a good game. I guess that's one way of them sort of trying to knock me off my game and make me feel uncomfortable about myself."

Maitland-Niles also revealed the advice he received at the time, as well as making another call for football to take greater action against discrimination within the game:

"At the time, I just spoke to my dad about it and he did sort of give me the heads up and showed me a few things about racism before my time, when I was playing football, just as there still is in the game now.

"I think we just really need to put our heads to it and get it cut out as soon as possible."

Those words, along with the subsequent inaction which followed Maitland-Niles reporting the abuse he'd received, speak to a problem that unfortunately remains ongoing for football.

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Sterling brought it firmly into focus after he accused Chelsea supporter Colin Wing of uttering racial insults during City's recent 2-0 defeat at Stamford Bridge on Saturday, an accusation Wing has since denied.

Sterling also posted on Instagram taking the newspapers to task for their negative coverage of young black footballers.

Maitland-Niles called Sterling a "brave lad" for speaking out.

Many, including Darren Lewis of the Daily Mirror, have called for Sterling's words to signal the need for introspection among sections of the press about how race is presented in sports, and how the type of language used can have negative effects:

Bournemouth defender Tyrone Mings also challenged some in the media to pay more heed to their coverage. The 25-year-old centre-back took to Twitter (h/t Goal's Jason Jones) to explain why he'd cancelled an interview with TalkSport, as he called for other players to choose the right platforms on which to speak out and to stay silent for outlets whose coverage is questionable.

Maitland-Niles sharing his own experiences of racial abuse is another reminder of football's need to move past a point when a player's only recourse is to respond on the pitch. Instead, the sport has to continue working toward an improved state where such abuse no longer exists, neither in the stands nor among the broader coverage and appreciation of the game.