Thomas Partey was great at right-back but we need him in Arsenal’s midfield

Arteta should abandon his experiment with Thomas Partey as a right-back. Yes, the Ghana international has had better performances at right-back compared to his brief stint there at the start of the 2023-24 season.

Before the October international break, it was difficult to discern that Arsenal lacked a proper right-back, as Partey assumed the position with ease.

After the break, he started as a #6 against Bournemouth and also retained his midfield spot in the first half against Shakhtar Donetsk. His performance at the heart of Arsenal’s engine room has got high praise; he really rose to the occasion, delivering his best performance of the season in the first half of Arsenal’s 1-0 victory over Shakhtar.

In the second half against the Ukrainian side, Arteta chose to revert him to right-back. He also did an excellent job there, but his void in Arsenal’s engine room was noticeable. The Gunners abruptly lost control and the influence they enjoyed in the first half and in the second half against Shakhtar.

Going into the next few games, the Arsenal defense is in disarray, with William Saliba suspended for the game against Liverpool and Riccardo Calafiori and Takehiro Tomiyasu injured. We are eagerly anticipating Jurrien Timber’s return from his injury.

Arteta and his technical bench may be brainstorming ways to deal with the defense’s absence, but they cannot do so by weakening the midfield. Thomas Partey, as demonstrated Tuesday night, must just be the main man in the midfield; the authority he gives Arsenal while there is unrivalled.

He has been consistent so far this season, and having him and Declan Rice in midfield increases our steel and advancement, which is undoubtedly the Gunners’ key to dominating games. Thomas Partey has played himself into relevance at Arsenal; he is essential to their performance, and this is evident in how he plays the #6 role. Playing him elsewhere diminishes Arsenal’s midfield brilliance.

Daniel O


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3 Comments

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  1. One of the reasons Wenger played the most beautiful football back then, he rarely mix his players and playing them out of position.

    It helps give his players a commanding understanding during the game.

  2. But Wenger did play players out of position, and quite frequently. Indeed, in some cases you could make the case that he persevered too long doing that.

    For example, Wenger deployed RVP both on the left wing and as a lone front man. Neither of these were his position. Indeed, he played him out wide (on the left) against Chelsea in an FA Cup Final! Likewise, he used players such as Diaby and the Arshavin out of position a lot of the time. There are many more examples.

    Wenger did great things at Arsenal as we all know, but you appear to see him as some sort of infallible “football saint” who always did everything correctly. He didn’t of course and like every other coach he was fallible.

  3. We are not talking of an ideal situation here but the possible option the coach could use. Pathey is great at No6 but imo Rice is equally suited for No6 if not better. And that’s what he plays for England national team. Merino is naturally a box to box midfielder like Xhaka so he can play No8 just like he does for Spain national team. Pathey will play inverted role which would make the midfield thick. Against Sharktar, Arteta said the players became leggy and tired that was why we lost the middield not the shift of Pathey to full back. We don’t seem to have much options. White was playing as our CBack before the emergence of Saliba and it’s only natural for him to click there imo. White is the only right footed CBack we have.

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