Diego Simeone has finally broken his silence after he lost one of his best players to Arsenal in a late transfer swoop last week.
Arsenal left it late to sign Thomas Partey from Atletico Madrid by triggering his release clause.
The midfielder has faced some backlash from the club’s fans as well as the Spanish media for the nature of his transfer out of the Spanish side.
However, while speaking on the issue for the first time, Diego Simeone wishes the midfielder well and the Argentine manager claimed that Partey made him happy while he played for him.
The manager was frustrated by Partey’s departure because he had already planned to feature him and Arsenal loanee, Lucas Torreira in the same team this season, but he will have to devise a new plan now.
Nevertheless, he has fond memories of Partey’s time at the club and said that he remembered him as a boy from his time in the club’s B team with Saul Niguez.
‘Everything that happens to the boys who gave me a lot of things at the club makes me happy,’ the former Argentina international said as quoted by Mail Online.
‘Thomas is a boy I remember from when he played in the B team with Saul [Niguez].
Atletico Madrid refused to negotiate with Arsenal, stating that any interested club would have to pay Thomas Partey’s buy out clause of €50 million. Atletico Madrid knew Arsenal were negotiating with Partey, Arsenal came to personal terms with him and met AM’s required buy out clause. End of story.
Thank you to Simeone for coaching Partey and hopefully he will reach his full potential at Arsenal, with his full attacking potential unleashed.