Arsenal's Thomas Partey have to "earn the right" to play the minutes, says Arteta

Thomas Partey has suffered a series of unexpected muscle injuries this season that have barely afforded him any playing time during the current campaign for Arsenal.

Indeed, the defensive midfielder returned to action in Arsenal's thrashing of Sheffield United on Monday, when the Ghana international replaced Jorginho to return to the pitch after spending four months on the sidelines through injury. 

Gunners coach Mikel Arteta was asked about the return of a player who until recently was indispensable to his side and the Spaniard, far from assuming the Ghana midfielder is assured of a place after recovering from injury, said he must earn the right to get playing time.

"Thomas is available now to play a certain amount of minutes and he needs to build that. It was his first minutes after four months and like everybody you have to earn the right to play the minutes," he said.

 

March 5, 2024