Mikel Arteta has hinted Thomas Partey could be set to play an important role between now and the end of the season.
After being out with a hamstring injury since November last year, Partey, 30, made his long-awaited return during Arsenal’s 6-0 demolition job away to Sheffield United on Monday night.
The midfielder was introduced in place of Jorginho with 25 minutes left to play. The Ghanaian had a decent cameo despite the Blades offering virtually nothing.
What has Mikel Arteta said about Thomas Partey?
And speaking to reporters after the game about what fans can expect from the 30-year-old ahead of a crucial run-in, Arteta, as quoted by Fabrizio Romano, has reminded the African he must perform in order to be selected.
“Thomas is available now to play a certain amount of minutes and he needs to build that,” the Gunners boss said.
“It was his first minutes after four months and like everybody you have to earn the right to play the minutes.”
Although they sit third in the Premier League table, just two points off leaders Liverpool, Arsenal could find themselves top with 10 games to play if they beat Brentford on Saturday and Manchester City draw away to Jurgen Klopp’s Reds on Sunday.
However, irrespective of Arteta’s need to have all his senior players available for the remainder of the season, when it comes to Partey, the defensive midfielder remains heavily linked with a summer transfer away from the Emirates.
The former Atletico Madrid man will soon enter his contract’s final year but reportedly remains a target for Max Allegri’s Juventus.
Partey took some time getting into the game and gave the ball away earlier on, but he got better towards the end with some positive runs and over the top passes. A little too early for him to start matches a head of Jorginho as he is a touch short of Arsenal’s midfield passing pace and interceptions.
I absolutely concur with you. Everyone knows what he can bring to the team because he had the talent and has done it before. He needs to be patient with himself, work on his physical conditioning and understand the pace of the Arsenal game as currently is. Jorginho clearly is right ahead of Partey with the stability and calming he has brought to the midfield base. It has given Rice a chance to run and carry the ball more. That should be minimum target Partey needs to aim for. With the run in in the title race Partey, Jorginho and Rice presence will be more critical than the impact strikers could have upfront. The team has make a mockery of the notion of a traditional 9 with goals all over. But that has happened because of the platform provided by the defensive unit together with fluid midfield at the base.