From the archives: The match that put Thomas Partey on Arsenal’s radar

A look into the match that had Arsenal setting sights on their current defensive midfield stalwart Thomas Partey.

Thomas Partey has been a rock in the midfield for Arsenal whenever he has been match-fit. The Ghanaian joined the North London club from Atletico Madrid in the year 2020, and has never looked back since then, despite initial hiccups and an off-court controversy later on.

Looking back, there was one high-profile match that first put Thomas Partey on Arsenal’s radar. The year was 2018, and it was Arsenal’s very first Europa League campaign in over two and a half decades. The North London club who were consistent with UEFA Champions League qualifications, missed out on the same for the 2017/18 season, after finishing 5th in the English Premier League.

Given their status, the Gunners were one of the favorites to win the competition, besides one other club – Atletico Madrid. And as expected, the two clubs clashed in the semi-final stage.

Arsenal were handed an early advantage

While the match was expected to be tough, Arsenal were still the favorites being at home, and also their impeccable home record that year. To make things easy, Arsenal were handed a boost when right-back Sime Vrsaljko was sent off in only the 10th minute of the match. The Gunners began sniffing blood, and with Alexandre Lacazette upfront, they had a huge chunk of the game left to improve their score before heading to the return fixture.

Thomas Partey took up a makeshift RB role

Thomas Partey, who started for Atletico Madrid as their CDM was told to take up Vrsaljko’s position. The Ghanaian took up RB, and began putting in a massive shift, thwarting the wave of Arsenal attacks. The services to Lacazette were diminished courtesy of Partey’s menacing presence. Atletico saw out the half, heading 0-0 into the break.

Arsenal took the lead in the second half

Arsenal, however, took the lead through the usual suspect Lacazette in the 62nd minute. And the Gooners and Gunners alike felt that the goal would have surely opened the floodgates. But it was not so. A defiant Atletico Madrid, spearheaded by Partey at RB, continued with the same defensive setup with an aim of getting a late smash-and-grab.

Atletico Madrid ended up getting the smash-and-grab they needed

Into the last 10 minutes of normal time, a stunning run from Griezmann when Arsenal were looking to extend their lead, saw Atletico Madrid put the ball in the back of Arsenal’s net to make it 1-1. Mission smash-and-grab was accomplished. The match ended 1-1, and Atletico went on to win the next leg 1-0 in typical Atletico fashion, advancing to the final and eventually winning the UEFA Europa League.