It is now very clear that Mikel Arteta is very worried about the injury to Thomas Partey from Arsenal’s last game, and it sounds like the boss will not be rushing him back to training so as to not take any chances of a recurrence in the near future.
Partey was supposed to be the last piece in Arteta’s jigsaw (except for maybe a new attacking midfielder to partner him) but, having played three games in quick succession since his arrival, it looks like he may have been pushed to the forefront a little too quickly his and muscles must have been feeling the strain.
Arteta was asked in the pre-match press conference whether Partey was on his way to recovery, but the Boss responded: “No, he picked up an injury very early in the game [against Aston Villa], he tried to carry on and he wanted to play the second half and we knew it was a significant injury. He has done really well, he is working very hard and he wants to be available. Hopefully we can get him back soon but it is an area where we have to be careful and a bit protective with the player.”
This could be a big setback to our season, with Leeds, Wolves and Tottenham all facing us in the next few weeks.
Let’s hope Thomas recovers very quickly…