Arsenal midfielder Thomas Partey has been withdrawn from the Black Stars squad for the upcoming AFCON qualifiers this international break, due to injury.
Ghana were set to face Sudan in a double header, with the first game this Thursday. The Black Stars will suffer a huge blow without their captain.
Partey has had an injury free start to this campaign after only playing a total of 14 Premier League games last season.
There has been no official word on what kind of injury it is, but it may be revealed in the coming hours.
He becomes the latest Arsenal player to pull out of international duty after Kai Havertz was also ruled out with a knee injury.
Ghana announce Thomas Partey absence from AFCON qualifiers
The Ghana Football association released a statement on their official website to confirm the withdrawal of Thomas Partey.
“Thomas Partey, Joseph Painstil, Kingsley Schindler, and Osman Ibrahim have been ruled out of the 2025 TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Sudan due to injuries they picked up over the weekend. The four players were initially part of Coach Otto Addo’s 25-man squad for the double header.”
On the website, it is shown that the reason for the midfielder’s absence is listed as ‘medical issues’.
“Thomas is unable to join the Black stars due to medical issues he is currently experiencing, and his club has scheduled him for further tests in the coming days.”
Partey was initially listed in the 25-man squad named by Otto Addo but it seems unlikely he will feature, with multiple replacements having been named already.
Mikel Arteta wants key midfielder to stay at club
Partey’s contract is set to expire in June 2025, but Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has made it clear that he wants him to stay in North London.
“He’s a massive player for us and he’s shown that week in, week out. He’s started the season really well, really fit,” he stated.
“The way he came back post-holiday was probably in the best condition that he’s been, which was really helpful as well.
“Now he needs to continue to do that. We have managed certain minutes with him in the right way and the team is doing that, and then he’s doing everything he can as well to be in the best physical condition.”
Arsenal have a whole host of fixtures lined up after the international break including four Premier League fixtures, an EFL Cup tie with Preston and two Champions League fixtures against Shakhtar Donetsk and Inter Milan.
Mikel Arteta’s men will be away to Bournemouth on 19th October when the Premier League resumes.y
