After over three months out injured, Thomas Partey is finally back for Arsenal. The Ghanaian made his return to action in the 6-0 hammering of Sheffield United and also made a late cameo as Arsenal edged out Brentford 2-1.
Partey has not exactly looked at his best in those appearances. The 30-year-old has typically been a player who likes to play himself back into form where possible.
This is something Arsenal are keen to manage. That’s particularly the case with the number of setbacks he’s suffered this season. The thigh injury that saw him miss three months came after recovering from a hamstring injury, and just after he returned to training in January he suffered a separate muscle problem that delayed his return by over four weeks. Assuming the Gunners do get Partey’s rehab right though, his return could help them in two ways.
Arsenal are already well versed in Partey's capabilities at the base of midfield. In their unexpected title charge last season the former Atletico Madrid man was largely excellent in the number six role, while in the campaign prior to that his form had propelled Arsenal to a Champions League qualification push. In the limited matches where Partey was fully fit earlier this season though, Arteta opted to use him differently.
In truth, the experiment began at the end of last season. With William Saliba, Takehiro Tomiyasu and Oleksandr Zinchenko out injured, and Kieran Tierney not trusted to invert from left back, Arteta opted to use Partey as a right back and move Ben White into central defence, with Jakub Kiwior shifting over to left back. You could argue that he was just managing an injury crisis at the time, but Arteta’s willingness to use him when he had a near fully fit squad at the start of the
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