Sports News of Wednesday, 18 January 2023

Source: www.ghanaweb.com

Thomas Partey is the best midfielder in the Premier League - ESPN's Craig Burley

Arsenal midfielder Thomas Partey Arsenal midfielder Thomas Partey

Former Scottish footballer, Craig Burley has passed a vote of confidence in Ghana’s Thomas Partey as the best midfielder in the Premier League.

The ESPN reporter is one of many football fans who were awed by the sheer class of Thomas Partey in the North London derby.

In a post via his Twitter handle, Craig Burley wondered if the league had a better midfielder than the 29-year-old Arsenal midfielder.

“Is there a better midfielder in the PL than Thomas Partey right now? Not for me. He’s been on fire”, he tweeted.

His tweet attracted replies from some fans who mentioned Brighton’s Caicedo and Casemiro of Manchester United but Burley insisted that much as the two players have been standout performers for their respective clubs, Thomas Partey has been head and shoulders above every other midfielder in the league.

Partey’s name was once again on the lips of Arsenal fans as he engineered their 2-0 victory over rival Tottenham Hotspur.

The Ghanaian midfielder was involved in all their goals providing the passes that led to the final pass before the goal.

In the first goal, Partey found winger Bukayo Saka with a tailored dink before the English player of Nigerian descent hit in the cross for Spur goalie Hugo Lloris to palm into his own net.

Partey once again found Saka who connected with skipper Martin Odegaard for the Norwegian to release a long drive that got Arsenal their second and final goal of the night.

His stats at the end of the game on Sunday, January 15, 2022, read; 87 touches, 66/72 passes completed, 14 passes into the final third, 8 ball recoveries, 4/5 long passes completed, 4/5 ground duels won, 2 blocks, 2 tackles won, 1 shot off the woodwork.

There will be a showdown between Partey and Casemiro when Arsenal clash with Manchester United in a Premier League fixture on Sunday, January 22, 2023 at the Emirates.