Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has delivered a worrying update about Thomas Partey.
The Ghana international came off injured with an ankle issue in the first half of his side’s 2-1 defeat by Chelsea in a pre-season friendly at the Emirates Stadium this afternoon.
Partey, a £45 million signing by Arsenal last October, suffered a number of injuries during his first season in North London.
Worryingly, a verified doctor on Twitter claimed that the former Atletico Madrid midfielder was looking at a potential six-week layoff this time, based on his expertise.
Here’s what Arteta said after the game:
Scary
The phrase ‘not looking good’ is never a good thing in the context of an injury.
Arsenal badly need a fit and powerful Partey available for the 2021-22 season but his campaign looks like beginning in the worst possible way.
The good news for Arteta – whose side kick off the Premier League campaign away to Brentford in only 12 days – is that there’s still a full month of the transfer window left.
And if Partey was going to get injured, you’d rather it happen now than a day after the window shuts, for example.
Arsenal are already linked to midfielders and it wouldn’t be a surprise if speculation intensified over the coming weeks.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
