Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has explained that honest self-reflection has helped Thomas Partey turn his form around in recent weeks after an inauspicious start to the season.
Partey has been inconsistent since arriving at the Emirates Stadium in 2020 for £45m, with injuries and poor performances curtailing his development.
However, he seems to have finally found his feet in North London in 2022, most recently helping Arsenal to three Premier League wins on the spin by playing every minute.
Partey's resurgence comes after he rated his Gunners career so far as a 4/10 in December and speaking before his side's trip to Watford on Sunday, Arteta praised the midfielder for turning things around.
"I think when you are honest with yourself it’s a great starting point and when you assess yourself in the way that Thomas did publicly, it’s a really rare thing to do," he said.
"He did it because he believed that was the case, that he wants to give much more to the team and to the club and probably that something has clicked again, probably the fact that he’s been injury-free, it’s a massive thing in there, but as well he’s probably more fit because he’s doing things better."
Arteta went on to reveal that Partey, who opened his scoring account for Arsenal against Aston Villa earlier this season, had been working on adding more goals to his game on the training ground.
"He is practising and some of the goals he scores in training you would be amazed!" Arteta said. "You won’t believe me probably, so you will have to see one of those soon going into the net."
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Source : 90min