Former Vice President of the Ghana Football Association (GFA), George Afriyie has shared his view on why Thomas Partey is sometimes not at his best when playing for the Black Stars.
While he believes it’s because of a number of factors, the experienced football administrator noted that one of the reasons is because the Arsenal man is sometimes not played in the right position.
“It’s a combination of factors. Compare Partey to Michael Essien in a Ghana jersey. What we saw Michael [Essien] do at Chelsea was not the same as he did for the Black Stars but he delivered when it mattered most and that is why he is loved by all.
“We played Congo in Brazzaville and Partey was pushed up front in more of a No.8 or No.10 position and he scored 3 goals.
“It depends on how a coach wants to parade his players. It depends on the set of players he brings around him. So it would be very difficult to compare Partey in Arsenal to Partey in Ghana because you need to consider the materials around him at Arsenal and compare that to Ghana,” George Afriyie explained in an interview with 3Sports.
The former GFA Vice President added, “So for me, it is the way we position him and the roles we assign him. Partey has always had the desire and shown commitment that he wants to play for Ghana.”
Thomas Partey in the last few assignments of the Black Stars was criticized by Ghanaians for underperforming.
He will have the chance to make amends in the upcoming international break when Ghana takes on Angola in a doubleheader encounter of the AFCON qualifiers.