PARTEY PLANNER

Thomas is man to lift Gunners

The Gunners manager splashed out £ 45million on the Atletico Madrid midfielder on deadline day in a statement of intent by the club. And he is set to give the Ghana star his debut at Manchester City today.

Arteta believes Partey, 27, can give Arsenal a driving force that they have lacked since he took over.

The Spaniard said: “Thomas is going to give us more versatility.

“He can play in two or three different positions when we are able to change formations or game plans.

“He will give us something that we don’t have in the team.”

Partey, who has netted 10 goals from midfield in 30 games for Ghana, moved after Arsenal triggered his get- out clause.

Arteta said: “We need a balance between the young players we have and others that are at the peak or twilight of their careers.

“Thomas is the right recruit for us in terms of age, his history and career, where he has been educated, the amount of experience he has and the quality that he has to adapt to our game.”

But the Arsenal manager pleaded for fans to give their new man time to adapt to the pace and aggression of the Premier League – despite his strength, speed and range of passing

Arteta said: “There is a lot of expectation, but we have to give players time. The Spanish league and the Premier League are completely different, the style of play of Atletico and ours have big differences as well.

“What is not in question is the quality of the player and the level he has been playing in the past five or six years.

“If he has the support of the coaching staff, players and fans, the adaptation will be quick.” Arsenal are confident full- back Kieran Tierney will be released from his quarantine in time to face City.

He was forced to isolate after Scotland team- mate Stuart Armstrong tested positive for Covid- 19, though Tierney tested negative. The club has been talking to Scottish health authorities.