Arsenal have made a late move to try and sign Atletico Madrid midfielder Thomas Partey and the Ghanaian midfielder is now set to undergo a medical according to David Ornstein.
The Gunners have been looking to bolster their midfield all summer and now with just hours remaining in the transfer window, it seems they could finally land a major signing in Partey. Charles Watts, Arsenal correspondent for Goal broke the news this morning that Arsenal have made their move for Partey today.
Thomas Partey is en route to London as we speak. (@jamesbenge) pic.twitter.com/aKNRT7RMg7
— Fresh Arsenal (@Fresh_Arsenal) October 5, 2020
A club insider told Fresh Arsenal that Partey’s contract will be worth well in excess of £200,000 per week. The Gunners and the player had agreed terms in advance of deadline day, meaning Arsenal just had to trigger the clause and complete a medical to get a deal done.
Earlier today we saw a representative of Partey hint at possible deadline day activity and that triggered all the news we’ve seen since.
Partey can play as a defensive midfielder or as a box to box player, but his defensive qualities are more impressive than his attacking.
Partey is not the neatest midfielder in possession, with 83.5% pass success rate, but that is in part due to Simeone’s tactics. He averages 52.6 passes per game, making him a player that is heavily involved in the play. With 0.9 key passes per game, he’s not the most creative and tends to leave that to his teammates, but defensively he shines. 2.5 tackles, 1.4 interceptions, 1.2 clearances and 1.8 aerial duels won per game.
He is also a very good carrier of the ball, of the 134 players to attempt 35+ dribbles, Thomas Partey has a better dribble success rate (88.9%) than any other player since the start of the 2019/20 LaLiga season.