Ahead of Arsenal’s second leg against Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League, Thomas Partey was being billed as the difference-maker.
Partey was suspended in the first leg of the tie owing to a needless yellow card he picked up during Arsenal’s win over Real Madrid in Spain.
Therefore, Mikel Arteta had to shuffle his pack against PSG at home and Arsenal lost the threat of Declan Rice somewhat, given he was needed to sit as a six.
However, for Arsenal’s trip to Paris, Partey was available and Arteta was able to field his strongest team, minus those who are out for the season: Kai Havertz, Gabriel Magalhaes and Gabriel Jesus.
Before the game, Rice asked Partey to step up against PSG, but aside from the midfielder’s surprisingly effective long-throws, he wasn’t quite up to the task.
French media give their Thomas Partey review
That being said, French media shared their reaction to Partey’s performance after full-time, with one outlet handing the £45m midfielder a 3/10.
Maxifoot noted that Partey was ‘far too soft’ for PSG’s second goal when Achraf Hakimi was able to steal the ball on the edge of Arsenal’s box, and then effectively end any chances of a comeback.
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Sharing their rating, they wrote: “Suspended in the first leg, the midfielder was back in Arsenal’s starting lineup tonight.
“Unfortunately, the Ghanaian international wasn’t very happy. It was his central pass that allowed Ruiz to open the scoring.
“On the second Parisian goal, he was far too soft in front of Hakimi and Dembele.”
Footmercato saw slightly more reason to be positive, handing Partey a 5.5/10 rating, but they also mentioned the role he played in ‘gifting’ the ball to PSG for their second.
They wrote: “Suspended in the first leg, the absence of Thomas Partey weighed on the result of the match at the Emirates Stadium.
“From the start of the evening, his long throw-ins posed real problems for Paris, and his intensity in midfield kept PSG in their own half for a good part of the first half.
“Assailed by waves of the Parisian midfield, he tried to split his numbers to slow down counterattacks, too often without success.
“Unfortunately, he was much too soft on a ball at the edge of his area, gifting the second goal to Hakimi.”
Thomas Partey’s Arsenal contract
Of course, Partey’s contract is currently set to expire at the end of the season and it remains to be seen if Arsenal will agree to a new deal.
Arsenal have done a U-turn on Partey’s contract but it would appear from reports that the 31-year-old wants an increase in pay — something the Gunners might be reluctant to agree to.
One performance doesn’t define Partey’s season — he’s been excellent for the most part.
But it’s hard to argue against the idea of Arsenal signing Martin Zubimendi, who could prove to be a much more consistent presence at number six.
If he stays, Partey needs to play a slightly lesser role, one that should benefit his availability given the muscle issues he’s suffered in the past.
A frustrating night for Arsenal, and Partey wasn’t able to change the course of the tie after all.
