No party for Partey in Arsenal

It must be frustrating. To join Arsenal only to be sidelined for most of the season due to an injury. 27-year-old Ghanaian midfielder Thomas Partey came to London after several successful seasons in Atletico Madrid with the expectance to reach his career-peak at Emirates Stadium. But it has been a bumpy ride so far, to put it politely.

He has already missed 11 games in the last four months because of various injuries. The last reports say that coach Mikel Arteta cannot count on him not only for Sunday's clash with Leeds United but for two more weeks. In comparison to Partey's days in Spain, the Arsenal episode looks awful. While he played for Los Colchoneros, he missed only six matches for the same reason.

Partey and Arteta (©Reuters)

Arteta is dissatisfied for not having one of his top stars available.

"He felt something during the game, and we didn't think it was too bad but after the scan looked a little bit worse," Arteta said of Partey's injury, confirmed by the club as a hamstring issue.

"He was devastated, we were all devastated because we know the importance of Thomas and we haven't had him since we signed him, we haven't had him in three games consecutively.

"It is a big blow for us, but he is adapting to the league, he has been very unlucky as well, and Partey is very frustrated because he is a very competitive guy who wants to feel important and be important for the team and at the moment the injuries are restricting a lot of game time for him."

Asked why he felt Partey was struggling more with injuries since his arrival at the Emirates Stadium, Arteta felt several factors are at work: "He came here from a different league and physically it's much more demanding than the Spanish league.

"Partey got injured, wanted to get back, got back, and then he got injured again, so his rhythm has been in and out. He hasn't had a pre-season and hasn't had the type of preparation needed for such a change.

PREMIER LEAGUE - ROUND 24th

Saturday

15.30: (3,20) Leicester (3,40) Liverpool (2,25)

18.00: (2,55) Crystal Palace (2,95) Burnley (3,05)

20.30: (1,38) Manchester City (4,70) Tottenham (8,50)

23.00: (2,75) Brighton (3,05) Aston Villa (2,75)

Sunday

15.00: (2,55) Southampton (3,00) Wolverhampton (3,00)

17.00: (9,00) WBA (5,00) Manchester United (1,35)

19.30: (2,00) Arsenal (3,45) Leeds (3,80)

22.00: (1,98) Everton (3,40) Fulham (3,90)

Monday

21.00: (1,77) West Ham (3,50) Sheffield United (4,90)

23.00: (1,28) Chelsea (5,70) Newcastle United (10,5)