Mikel Arteta has admitted that he would like to keep Thomas Partey at Arsenal despite doubts over his future.
The Ghanaian has been heavily linked with an exit after enduring another injury hit campaign. He made just his first start since August in Wednesday's 2-0 win over Luton after missing more or less six months of football due to a spate of muscle injuries.
In that time he has fallen behind Declan Rice and Jorginho in the pecking order at the Emirates Stadium. With just 12 months remaining on his contract at the end of this season, this has created speculation that he could be on his way out of the club this summer, with Juventus and teams in Saudi Arabia among those understood to be interested.
Partey though, has insisted that he is keen to stay. «My head is always here,» he told reporters after the win over Luton. «This is where I choose to play, I'm really happy every time I'm on the field. I know a lot of speculations have been going on, but for me, I'm really happy to be here and to continue playing for this club.»
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These sentiments have now been echoed by Arteta who insisted that Partey still has an important role between now and the end of the season. «He’d better have his head here, because we are playing for big things,» the Spaniard said ahead of Arsenal's clash with Brighton this weekend. «That’s what we expect. We need him. He’s a top player and important for us, you could see the other day on the pitch the impact that he can have for us.
»He's our player, he's got one more year's contract and I'm really happy with him."
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