Whether Mikel Arteta or any other of his charges admits it or not, there is no player in the Arsenal setup like Thomas Partey.
It was clearly evident at the Emirates against Paris St-Germain in the first leg of the first semi-final of the 2024-25 UEFA Champions League that something was amiss with the Gunners.
In a 4-3-3 formation, the former PSG player, now manager of Arsenal, lined Martin Ødegaard, Mikel Merino, and sudden free-kick specialist Declan Rice to face the Parisiens.
Opposed to that set of midfield three were Fabian Ruiz, Joao Neves, and eventual man-of-the-match winner Vitinha. These midfield three are probably the best in the world at the moment.
However, with Arteta’s preferred midfield selection, it was glaring throughout the entirety of the encounter how limited they were in the absence of the Ghanaian international Partey.
Partey was silly in the quarter-final second leg against Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu, getting himself suspended for the first leg of the semi-final.
Captain of Arsenal, Ødegaard, admitted in an interview with American television channel CBZ Golazo to the team missing the Black Stars midfielder.
Manchester United legend Peter Schmeichael in his post-match analysis of the game, also pointed out the obvious, stating the Gunners missed their spine, comprising Gabriel Magalhães in defence, Partey in midfield, and Kai Havertz in the forward position.
Partey is set for a return to European action in the return leg at the Parc de Prince next week, when Arsenal would try to overturn a 1-0 first leg defeat to PSG.
