Arsenal's perfect BARGAIN Partey replacement
Tom Weber
- Updated: 6 Sept 2023 22:06 BST
- 4 min read
Arsenal midfielder Thomas Partey will be 'out for a few weeks' after suffering a groin injury, promoting questions about whether the Gunners were right to keep him around this summer.
The north London giants reportedly warded off interest from Saudi Arabia and Juventus during the summer transfer window as they were intent on keeping hold of Thomas Partey and Mikel Arteta publicly stated that the Ghanaian was firmly in his plans despite the signing of Declan Rice for a then-British transfer record.
But was it the right decision? The 30-year-old has struggled for fitness since his arrival at the Emirates in 2020. In fact, he has spent time on the sidelines with seven different injuries over the past three years and he is once again on the treatment table.
READ: Romano reveals TRUTH behind Arsenal’s €58m January transfer target
Though the offers Arsenal received for Partey weren't close to their valuation, they may have been better served accepting and using the money to buy a younger, less injury-prone replacement - and there is one man who would have been - and still is - perfect for the job.
Gunners should sign Fofana
That man is AS Monaco's Youssouf Fofana, who was heavily targeted by Newcastle and Nottingham Forest over the summer. The French international decided to stay put, but he is on an expiring contract, though the Ligue 1 club can extend that by a further year.
As Football.London points out, Arsenal will be familiar with Fofana as he featured for Monaco against Arteta and company at the Emirates Cup in pre-season. Moreover, his contract length and the fact that his French club accepted a €35 million offer from Forest means that he could be something of a bargain.
READ: Arsenal make ‘ABSURD’ demands in transfer talks over Euro 2020 winner
Data experts SciSports give the likeliness of this move happening four out of five stars and their algorithm predicts that Fofana would be better suited to Arsenal than his current side despite the fact that Partey and Rice would be considered ahead of him in the pecking order, which heavily skews the rating.
In other words, were Partey to depart, Fofana's Arsenal club fit rating would likely skyrocket and even better illustrate what a good option Fofana would be for the Gunners.
