Thomas Partey is Arsenal bound and ‘will not play for Atletico again’
Thomas Partey is Arsenal bound and will not play for Atletico Madrid again, according to TheAFCBell.
The Gunners will trigger the Ghanaian midfielder’s £45 million buyout clause and bring him to the Emirates this summer. The player has already agreed personal terms with Arsenal and will sign a four year contract with the club.
Arsenal view Partey as their primary transfer target and will do everything they can to secure a deal for the 27 year old. He has been scouted by Arsenal ever since he was on loan at Mallorca in 2013.
The Gunners continued keeping tabs on the Ghana international as he progressed his game and started playing regularly for Atletico Madrid. Arsenal’s scouting team recommended that he be signed by the club. Unai Emery is believed to have been keen on signing Partey last summer but resources were allocated elsewhere and that move was not pursued.
This summer, however, Arsenal head coach Mikel Arteta and technical director Edu Gaspar have rubber stamped a move for the player and view him as a crucial part of the project in North London.
The Gunners attempted to sign Partey for less than his £45 million release clause by offering cash plus one of a number of Arsenal players including Matteo Guendouzi. Atletico Madrid rejected all offers for the player and insisted that they would only let the Ghanaian midfielder leave the club if his buyout clause was triggered.
Reports emerged that Arsenal had communicated to Atletico that they would not stump up the £45 million required to sign the player but this is untrue. The Gunners have always been open to triggering the player’s release clause but viewed that as a plan to be set in motion only if all other offers failed to convince the Rojiblancos to part with their prized asset.
The 27 year old is believed to be keen on playing for Arsenal and Mikel Arteta. With Atletico Madrid’s Champions League campaign coming to an end due to their 2-1 defeat to Red Bull Leipzig, negotiations for Partey are expected to be resumed between the two clubs.
