It’s great that Arsenal have got Partey back in midfield but who is his best partner? | OneFootball

Injuries have forced Mikel Arteta to play Thomas Partey out of position at right back, but we finally got him back in Arsenal’s midfield against Crystal Palace, in a game where all we wanted was a win.

Rightfully, he was at fault for Palace’s Ismaila Sarr’s goal. However, apart from his wandering that led to the team conceding, he had a great performance in that 5-1 win.

In fact, how would you rate the Ghana international’s performance out of 10?

I’d give him a 7 (JA gave him a 6.5 rating) out of ten. He may not have been as defensively solid as we know he can be initially, but how many roles is Partey expected to play in midfield? He had to mark, track runners, give progressive passes to initiate attacks, and drop in between the center backs to dictate play. Kai Havertz, who was supposed to help him out, didn’t do much.

Ismaila Sarr of Crystal Palace scores his team’s first goal whilst under pressure from Thomas Partey and William Saliba of Arsenal (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)

You’d agree that without Rice, Partey was asked to do way too much, but he still managed to contribute to the second goal by assisting Gabriel Jesus. Notably, when Rice came on, it was a different ball game; things changed because the Englishman offered what Partey lacked when playing with Havertz.

Partey with Havertz (58 mins):

– 1.66 xG Conceded

– 13 Shots Conceded

– 6 Shots on Target Conceded

– 3 Big Chances Conceded

Partey with Rice (37 mins):

– 0.06 xG Conceded

– 2 Shots Conceded

– 0 Shots on Target Conceded

– 0 Big Chances Conceded

That said, when Partey plays in his position, you see balance in the team. Notably, Rice doesn’t just help him defensively; he repays the favor by releasing the Englishman at times. That’s why you see the Arsenal #41 going forward and sometimes scoring goals like he did versus Palace.

It’s great to have Partey back in his best position but surely Arteta will have noticed which is the best partnership, and with Jesus making a comeback as well, where does this leave Havertz?

Daniel O

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