Why Thomas Partey is leaving Arsenal as Mikel Arteta and Andrea Berta transfer plan explained

Thomas Partey's contract is up and the Ghanaian leaves Arsenal. With many still questioning to decision not to improve his pay, football.london explores why the club made the choice and the facts which support the stance.

As June ends, the contracts of several Arsenal players, including Thomas Partey, have officially ended. The club released the list of players who were expected to leave, including Kieran Tierney and Jorginho, but noted that discussions were ongoing with Partey over a potential new deal.

However, those discussions have proven unsuccessful with the club unwilling to meet the player’s financial demands, and he will now depart. The club have acted swiftly in response to the loss of their two defensive midfield options, and Christian Norgaard is expected to sign to join fellow summer signing Martin Zubimendi in the side for the forthcoming season.

For much of the previous campaign, it was thought that Partey would leave, and there were no known discussions over a renewal. However, with news that Jorginho had decided that it would be his final season with the club ahead of a switch to Brazil, the club reconsidered and began discussions with Partey over potentially staying longer.

In the end, this is the right decision for Arsenal for many different reasons. Firstly, when it comes to signing a new contract, the club should look to give the deal based on what they’re going to get, not what the player has done.

Although you can make a very good inference of what you might be getting from what has occurred, when players are moving beyond 32 years old, as Partey is, there is a natural expectation of a downturn. Partey’s passes into the final per 90 third have declined over the last three seasons successively (8.37 > 6.93 > 5.4).

Pass completion was down from the previous season (89.6% > 87.4%), as was attempted passes per game (72.3 > 61.7), and shot-creating actions per 90 (2.86 > 2.00).