Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta provides huge injury update on Thomas Partey ahead of Europa League round of 32 second leg with Benfica. (Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has provided the latest injury news on Thomas Partey ahead of a season-defining Europa League round of 32 second leg clash with Benfica in Athens.
Bought for £45m from Atletico Madrid in the summer, the Ghanaiain has been beset with injuries throughout his time in north London, with fans barely getting a glimpse of the midfielder, and when having had the pleasure of doing so, he’s been far from fully fit.
Rushed back from a thigh problem to face Tottenham in the North London Derby in December, a series of niggling concerns have prevented his Gunners career from taking off, missing crucial games at key points of the season.
The latest concern for Thomas Partey has been a hamstring injury sustained in the latter stages of the 1-0 defeat to Aston Villa in early February, but Arteta has provided a welcome update ahead of Thursday’s crunch European tie.
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta provides huge injury update on Thomas Partey ahead of Europa League round of 32 second leg with Benfica
Speaking in his pre-match press conference, the Spaniard revealed there is a good chance the 27-year-old could return in time for the trip to Greece.
“Thomas is very close he’s got a final test in training and if he’s feeling good he will be available to play the match,” Arteta stated, as quoted by football.london.
The news is a huge boost for the Gunners who head to the Georgios Karaiskakis Stadium with a slight advantage over their opponents, as Bukayo Saka’s second half goal cancelled out Pizzi’s penalty in the same half to level matters at 1-1.
On a knife edge, Arsenal will need all the help they can get in their bid to each the round of 16, and with their midfield struggles laid bare all season, they may be in luck.
Even if he is available, should he play?
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<p>— Chris Wheatley (@ChrisWheatley_) <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/02/24/arsenal-huge-partey-injury-benfica/"https://twitter.com/ChrisWheatley_/status/1364504075673477122?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%22>February 24, 2021</a></p></blockquote>
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<h2>Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta provides huge injury update on Thomas Partey ahead of Europa League round of 32 second leg with Benfica</h2>
<p>Speaking in his pre-match press conference, the Spaniard revealed there is a good chance the 27-year-old could return in time for the trip to Greece.</p>
<blockquote><p>“Thomas is very close he’s got a final test in training and if he’s feeling good he will be available to play the match,” Arteta stated, as quoted by <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/02/24/arsenal-huge-partey-injury-benfica/"https://www.football.london/arsenal-fc/fixtures-results/arsenal-live-conference-mikel-arteta-19902308" target="_blank" rel="noopener">football.london</a>.</p></blockquote>
<p>The news is a huge boost for the Gunners who head to the Georgios Karaiskakis Stadium with a slight advantage over their opponents, as Bukayo Saka’s second half goal cancelled out Pizzi’s penalty in the same half to level matters at 1-1.</p>
<p>On a knife edge, <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/02/24/arsenal-huge-partey-injury-benfica/"https://www.90min.com/teams/arsenal" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Arsenal</a> will need all the help they can get in their bid to each the round of 16, and with their midfield struggles laid bare all season, they may be in luck.</p>
<p>Even if he is available, should he play?</p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/02/24/arsenal-huge-partey-injury-benfica/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> A gamble worth taking on Partey? </a>
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<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-large wp-image-112230" src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/02/24/arsenal-huge-partey-injury-benfica/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_389,w_590/https%3A%2F%2Fpaininthearsenal.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2017%2F07%2F1300666716-850x560.jpeg" alt="Arsenal, Thomas Partey" width="590" height="389"><div class="fs-center-img">
<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 06: Thomas Partey of Arsenal receives medical treatment during the Premier League match between Aston Villa and Arsenal at Villa Park on February 06, 2021 in Birmingham, England. Sporting stadiums around the UK remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)</p>
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<h2>Will Thomas Partey be fit to Face Benfica on Thursday?</h2>
<p>The congested fixture schedule and the lack of recovery time between matches has contributed to a spike in muscle related injuries across sides in the Premier League, and with <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/02/24/arsenal-huge-partey-injury-benfica/"https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/02/15/arsenal-fixture-list-terrifying-test/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a European berth still within Arsenal’s sights</a> this season, no matter how faint, they can’t risk <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/02/24/arsenal-huge-partey-injury-benfica/"https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/thomas-partey/leistungsdaten/spieler/230784" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Thomas Partey</a> suffering another setback.</p>
<p>Speaking on whether Arsenal have an advantage going into Thursday, Arteta added:</p>
<blockquote><p>“Well the away goal is always important but in this context I don’t think it’s that relevant. We know to go there to try and win the game.”</p>
<p>“This is really what we need. Really tough opponent. They’re a champions league team that have been playing these types of games for many years. Tomorrow it’s a final.”</p></blockquote>
<p>Given the occasion and the absolute necessity to avoid crashing out of the competition at the same stage as last season, Partey will be in consideration.</p>
<p>It is, however, such a risk.</p>
<p>All supporters want to see their best players take to the field, but there can’t be another repeat of the mistakes from earlier this campaign. Not with Partey. Not again.</p>
<p>Dani Ceballos played well in the first leg even if some of the previous issues in moving the ball around quickly returned. But besides that, Arsenal were the better team and <em>are </em>a stronger outfit than Benfica. Partey is an obvious bonus but Arsenal have enough to secure progression without throwing caution to the wind with the midfielder.</p>
<div class="fs-shortcode" data-type="StoryLink" data-theme="dark" data-text="Benfica or bust" data-url="https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/02/23/arsenal-caution-benfica-bust-arteta/" data-call-to-action="Next"> <div class="story-link-next"> <a class="story-link-next-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="story-link-next-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/02/24/arsenal-huge-partey-injury-benfica/"https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/02/23/arsenal-caution-benfica-bust-arteta/"> <span class="call_to_action">Next:</span> Benfica or bust </a> </div>
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<p>Keep him on the bench and see how the match develops. Unless, that is, that the plan has been from the off to have him play in this fixture, with the rehabilitation up until this point leading to Thursday. After all, the initial 10/12-day timeframe has gone into week two now. Bench or starting lineup, the news is warmly received.</p><!—pageview_candidate—>">
