Thomas Partey has admitted that his debut season with Arsenal did not go entirely to plan, but insists that he is ready for the new season.
The Gunners stuttered to an eighth place finish in the Premier League this term, with the midfielder missing large chunks through various injuries, and the club now faces their first season in 25 years without European football.
Partey’s performances on the whole were positive however, despite his absences making it difficult for him to settle into his role, and the Ghanaian is ready to put their tough campaign behind him and look forward to the challenges ahead.
“Well I think everybody has seen it, there’s been ups and downs,” the Arsenal star said of his first season in England(via the Mirror).
“We’ve had good times and bad times, but this is my first season and I think I had to adapt to how they play, get used to my teammates.
“I think now I’m getting used to them and I know with hard work everything will be okay for the next season.
“Of course, it’s not easy. The Premier League is one of the best leagues in the world and if you want to be there you have to be able to do everything well.
“So I like this challenge and I’m ready to do everything.”
Thomas was then asked about that controversial moment where Mikel Arteta appeared to push him back onto the pitch against Tottenham when he was trying to come off injured, saying: “Well I think people misunderstood that situation.
“I remember when I first took the ball from one of the Spurs players and then I felt my calf, and then I was walking straight to the bench.
“And then I didn’t know what happened, I saw them attacking us.
“Arteta did not push me. I tried to run back to try and save the situation but I could not because it was very painful. And then the media took it and everything went viral.”
The former Atletico star was then asked how he was feeling after those injuries, to which he replied: “When you see the last few games I was able to play more than 70 minutes, some matches 90 minutes. So I think I’m feeling good.”
It certainly hasn´t been the best season for Partey or Arsenal on the whole, but there has definitely been plenty of positive signs, and the fact that we did finish the campaign with five straight wins will hopefully help us to bring that confidence into the new campaign.
Partey will no doubt be a big part of our new season, and he will hopefully be well rested and ready to go come August.
Patrick
