Mikel Arteta has confirmed that Thomas Partey is still a doubt to start Arsenal‘s Premier League clash with Everton on Wednesday night.

The Ghanaian midfielder had faced a spell on the sidelines with a thigh injury but made his return to action as a substitute against Leicester on the weekend.

It was expected he may therefore be fit to start from the off against Everton, but Arteta has refused to divulge whether or not that is the case.

‘He hasn’t trained much, he’s only had a session,’ Arteta said. ‘He will train today so it is what it is. He was out for a few weeks and he needs to get the rhythm.’

Partey was forced to sit out Arsenal’s 3-1 defeat to fellow title challengers Manchester City, while he also missed Arsenal’s incredible comeback against Aston Villa.

Mikel Arteta has confirmed that Thomas Partey is a doubt to start Arsenal’s Premier League clash with Everton

Arteta revealed that Partey has only had one training session, so they will have to wait and see whether he is fit enough to start against Everton

The Arsenal midfielder has been crucial to the Gunners’ push for a first title in 19 years, commanding the middle of the park week in, week out.

Arteta has been able to deploy January signing Jorginho in his absence – and the Italian proved crucial in earning Arsenal three points against Villa.

His stoppage time strike cannoned off the crossbar and came off Emi Martinez before rolling over the line to give Arsenal a 3-2 lead before Gabriel Martinelli added a fourth.

Partey was not deemed fit enough to start against Leicester on Saturday, but the 29-year-old replaced captain Martin Odegaard in the 84th minute in a major boost to Arsenal’s title hopes.

Arsenal were able to get the job done despite Partey’s absence from the start, with Martinelli’s second-half strike enough to seal all three points against at the King Power.

In bizarre scenes at full-time, centre-back duo Gabriel and William Saliba were spotted having an animated discussion, with both players gesticulating wildly.

Saliba could at one point be seen shoving the Brazilian, but it is unclear whether it was as serious as it seemed.

The Ghanaian midfielder came on as a late substitute during Arsenal’s 1-0 victory over Leicester on Saturday

When quizzed on the altercation, Arteta joked: ‘They are a happy marriage. They are very passionate. Everything is fine.’

Along with Partey’s return to the squad, Arsenal have received another major boost with long-term absentee Gabriel Jesus expected to be back in action before the international break, according to Football London.

The Gunners have a congested fixture load, as Arteta’s side face Bournemouth, Fulham and Sporting Lisbon twice after Wednesday’s clash with Everton – all in the space of two weeks.

source: dailymail.co.uk