3 Arsenal players who struggled vs Newcastle

2. Thomas Partey

Thomas Partey wasn’t dreadful by any means on Saturday. A bit like Arsenal in general, he did what he needed to do to help secure three points.

It wasn’t anything to shout about, though. The man alongside him, Sambi, ran the midfield and was laying off the sorts of passes you’d be expecting the Ghanaian to be making. His form feels a bit off since his injury, and for such a talisman player Arsenal need to see some more from him.

He had his moments, of course, with a few cute line-breaking passes into feet and some good recoveries of possession, but with Old Trafford looming there will need more bravery and dominance from the 28-year-old if he’s to take control of midfields like he has done in the past.

It may well be that Partey just did the job he was asked to. The way both teams set up meant that Sambi could afford to be more adventurous off the ball, sometimes covering the left-back space Nuno Tavares would free up, and when it came to breaking up Magpies attacks Partey did so effectively.

A lot will come down to expectation. Every misplaced pass from Partey is thrown under the microscope, but so it should be. He lost the ball 11 times on Saturday, didn’t make a tackle and won only two of his five ground duels. Those numbers require context, as he did his job enough, it’s just that supporters rightly want more.

Could it be that he hasn’t quite got up to speed since his injury? Perhaps. But for now there just isn’t enough of the command and sparkle from a player who can clearly produce it.

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