Arsenal have reportedly made a late move in order to sign priority midfield target Thomas Partey, tabling an offer to Atletico Madrid.
According to Charles Watts, who is the Arsenal correspondent for Goal, the Gunners have made a late move in order to sign Thomas Partey. Mikel Arteta & co. have been eyeing a move for the Ghanaian midfielder and the club seems to have tabled a last minute offer to Atletico Madrid for their priority target.
Arsenal have made a move for Thomas Partey. Story to follow.
— Charles Watts (@charles_watts) October 5, 2020
Arsenal have been pursuing deals for Houssem Aouar and Thomas Partey, who have been high on their priority list of reinforcements. With reports of Matteo Guendouzi going out on loan and Aouar all but set to stay at Lyon for this window, Arsenal seem to have picked up pace in their pursuit of Partey.
The financials of the offer has not been disclosed by Charles Watts. Although, it will be interesting to see if it is below Partey’s €50 million release clause, with Atletico Madrid reportedly adamant that they will not be negotiating a lower fee for the Ghanaian international.
Thomas Partey came through the ranks at Atletico Madrid and has fully established himself as a key player in their first-team setup for years now. Regarded by many as a top midfield talent, Partey has been courted by several clubs this summer, with Arsenal the most persistent one.
Atlético Madrid have no intention to start any negotiation for Thomas Partey, as reported by June. It’s €50m release clause to be paid immediatly [NO installments] or nothing. Atléti board still convinced he’s not gonna leave the club on next 2 days. ⚪️? #AFC #CFC #transfers
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) October 4, 2020
Mikel Arteta has been looking for reinforcements in midfield for the 2020-21 season. The Arsenal manager currently has Granit Xhaka, Mohamed Elneny, Dani Ceballos, Lucas Torreira and Matteo Guendouzi as regulars in the first-team setup, closely followed by Joe Willock.
However, Torreira and Guendouzi are both likely to go out on loan before the end of the transfer window and Arteta would like to add some steel to the midfield, which is where Partey comes in.
The 27-year-old is masterful when it comes to ball recoveries and knows when to keep things simple and rolling in midfield. Partey’s addition would allow Arsenal to attack without being as fearful of a counter as they are currently.
Fabrizio Romano has rebuffed reports claiming that Atletico Madrid have not yet received any offers for Partey. However, Arsenal fans will hope Partey will be the first of a couple of additions to their squad on deadline day as they hope for a return to their title challenger days.
