"He was lethargic on the ball" - Mark Schwarzer offers honest opinion on Arsenal star after 3-2 win vs Spurs
BBC Sport pundit Mark Schwarzer has offered his honest opinion on Thomas Partey, following Arsenal's 3-2 win over Tottenham Hotspur in the North London derby on April 28.
The Gunners looked to be the better side on the night, as they started the game in dominant fashion. The first goal for them came courtesy of an own goal from Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg in the 15th minute. Bukayo Saka doubled the score within another 15 minutes before Kai Havertz made it three towards the end of the first half.
In the second half, it was Tottenham's turn to take Arsenal by storm. The hosts latched on a mistake from Gunners goalkeeper David Raya. Cristian Romero placed his effort into the corner of the net to open the scoring just after the hour. Late in the game, Declan Rice was deemed to have fouled Ben Davies in the penalty area, and Son Heung-min buried his effort from 12 yards.
Spurs couldn't find another goal as the Gunners eventually took the win. Arsenal would be pleased with their overall performance, even if the second half went away from them. However, midfielder Thomas Partey stood out for Mark Schwarzer, who noted that the Ghanaian international struggled to keep up.
He said on BBC Radio Five Live (via Arsenal Insider):
“The minute the ball went into Thomas Partey with his back to play Spurs pressed. Partey took too much time and he was lethargic on the ball.”
Partey completed 37/40 passes in the game, and won 5/10 duels and made one clearance, one interception and two tackles.
Mikel Arteta reacts to Arsenal's derby win over Tottenham
Gunners manager Mikel Arteta has shared his thoughts after he led his side to a 3-2 win over Spurs in the North London derby. It also happened to be his 100th Premier League win as the manager of the club.
He spoke about the derby, revealing how they nearly lost the win, as a rejuvenated Spurs came back in the second half to score twice (via BBC):
"We gave it [the lead] away and made a huge mistake, but the reaction from my players [was good]. David Raya stood up and took six to seven crosses and that is what we want. If you are going to take risks, you have that reaction. I am really proud of them [the players].”
He also talked about David Raya's error, revealing that the team could handle the risks of playing out of the back:
"It is worth it, depending on the game context. That error is not bad luck, it is execution. The moment before that, the picture was not what we wanted it."
Now, Arsenal have to focus on their match against Bournemouth at home on May 4. Meanwhile, Tottenham have an outing against rivals Chelsea at Stamford Bridge to deal with on May 2.