Ghanaian midfielder Thomas Partey played a vital role for Arsenal in their 2-0 Champions League group stage match against PSG on Tuesday night, overcoming his recent struggles with injuries.
Partey was instrumental in helping Arsenal qualify for the Champions League two seasons ago for the first time since 2017, finishing as runners-up to Manchester City in the league.
Last season, however, Arsenal faced elimination in the quarter-finals after losing 3-2 on aggregate to Bayern Munich.
Due to injury, Partey missed three group stage matches against PSV Eindhoven and Lens, as well as the return fixture against PSV Eindhoven. His injuries primarily involved recurring groin and hamstring issues.
In the round of 16, although Partey was on the bench for the match against FC Porto, he did not see any playing time, similar to his situation in the second group match against Lens.
After missing the first leg against Porto due to a hamstring injury, Partey finally got some minutes in Arsenal’s first leg against Bayern Munich at the Emirates, thanks to Mikel Arteta’s late substitution.
The 31-year-old was left on the bench for the next match, which resulted in a 1-0 defeat to Arsenal.
However, during the 2024-25 UEFA Champions League season, Thomas Partey has already surpassed his appearance record from the previous season by starting in both of Arsenal’s matches against Atalanta and PSG.
He has also been involved in every Premier League game for the Gunners thus far, providing manager Mikel Arteta with the benefit of Partey’s experience in Europe’s top competition.
In the victory against PSG on Tuesday night, Partey excelled, making the most interceptions (3) of any player on the field as he dominated the midfield.
His impressive performance nearly earned him a goal; he came close to making contact with a free-kick from Bukayo Saka that went into PSG’s net untouched, giving the Gunners a crucial cushion.
Interestingly, a goal against PSG would have marked Partey’s third in the UEFA Champions League and coincidentally occurred on the same date, five years apart. On October 1, 2019, he scored his second and final UEFA Champions League goal against Lokomotiv Moscow while playing for Atlético Madrid.
Arsenal, one of the two unbeaten teams in the Premier League, will look to maintain their fantastic start to the season with a match against struggling Southampton on Saturday.
