In Arsenal midfielder Thomas Partey’s last appearance for Ghana, he scored a decisive goal. He guaranteed the Black Stars a place in the 2022 World Cup. Even better, it came against the team’s fiercest rivals, Nigeria.
His first goal for Arsenal in the 2022-23 campaign was scored in a similar fashion. The midfielder sent a shot from outside the box from 18 yards to the upper right corner. He was the first of three for the Gunners in a win over the club’s North London rivals. It was also Nigerian Independence Day.
Partey is arguably the most important player for his club and country. But his recent spate of injuries makes him unreliable.
When asked to rate his time as a striker, the defensive midfielder was blunt.
“Personally, I would say five or six (out of 10). But, with the marks of the (fans) as well, I would give myself four. There are times in a match where I can really hurt the other team, but there are also times where, because I’m not quite adapted to the Premier League yet, maybe I lose my concentration a little bit and that’s when it all falls apart. ”.
Thomas Partey injuries with Arsenal, Ghana
While Atletico Madrid’s academy product is critical of his performances, many point to his absences as the main reason for his lackluster time in London. During his last three seasons in Madrid, the Europa League winner averaged playing 33 league games a year. Since he moved to Arsenal, he only plays in 24 league games a season.
One of the reasons the Gunners fell out of the top-four contention at the end of last season was due to injuries to Partey, left-back Kieran Tierney and right-back Takehiro Tomiyasu. While Arsenal signed Oleksandr Zinchenko from Manchester City to improve their coverage for Tierney and centre-back Benjamin White has been impressive in his new role at right-back, they failed to sign another defensive midfielder. On the day of the transfer deadline, they tried to acquire Douglas Luiz from Aston Villa, but were unsuccessful.
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During the international break, Partey was scheduled to start against Brazil. He was pulled minutes before the match began due to a nagging knee problem. He subsequently returned to London to seek further treatment. Some Black Stars fans were upset to see Partey start a week after missing national team duty. Since Otto Addo was appointed Ghana’s head coach, Partey only played in two of the eight matches.
Because of this, the Black Stars head into the World Cup with a question mark in midfield. Addo has experimented with different formations during his time, but he seems to prefer 4-3-3 and 4-2-3-1. In both formations, Partey is crucial as a pivot who breaks up the game with well-timed positioning and tackling, helps orchestrate the build-up game and occasionally makes runs to serve as an outlet in the final third.
potential this year
In 2010, Ghana faced a similar problem. Michael Essien was their rock in midfield, but he missed the World Cup due to a knee injury. However, they did have suitable replacements in Kevin-Prince Boateng, Sulley Muntari, Anthony Annan and Kwadwo Asamoah. On this occasion, the Black Stars only have the Mallorcan Iddrisu Baba as an option in the pivot role. Ajax’s Mohamed Kudus and Freiburg’s Daniel-Kofi Kyereh are very good box-to-box players but lack the physicality to do the dirty work consistently.
If the two-time Ghanaian Player of the Year can stay healthy, Arsenal and Black Stars will be able to maximize his potential in their prospect campaigns. However, if the 29-year-old continues to suffer from ailments, this club and this country will suffer from poor planning.
PHOTO: IMAGO / Pro Sports Images
