Arsenal could be in line for more good news in the battle for top-four as Thomas Partey is seemingly ahead of schedule in his rehabilitation from a thigh injury that appeared to have ruled him out for the season.
The midfielder sustained the problem against Crystal Palace at the beginning of the month and when speaking ahead of the Gunners' clash with Southampton, Mikel Arteta dropped a major hint that he would not be able to call upon the Ghana international during the top-four run-in.
"The news that we got after having another assessment is not great," Arteta said in his pre-match press conference. "It’s not looking very positive for his availability this season, but we’ll have to wait and see. He’s trying to get back as quick as possible but at the moment we are not very optimistic about it."
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So far, Arteta's assessment has been spot on as whilst Partey has since sat out the last four games, he is clearly pushing to be available for selection as soon as possible with Arsenal ending the campaign with games against West Ham United, Leeds United, Tottenham Hotspur, Newcastle United and Everton.
But will he be successful with his plan? Well, taking to Instagram on Monday, the 28-year-old posted a video of him running on a treadmill which suggests he is doing everything in his power to play some part in the north London outfit's quest to qualify for next season's Champions League.
Although a return to action this season can't be completely ruled out, Partey's social media post should serve as a timely reminder to Arteta that he doesn't need to take any unnecessary risks.
This is in relation to the length of time it usually takes the midfielder to find his rhythm after injury. For example, just last season he sustained a thigh problem against Aston Villa in the middle of November, was rushed back for the North London Derby against Tottenham Hotspur a few weeks later where he suffered a recurrence of the injury that kept him out for another six weeks.
In total, Partey would miss 10 games and it took him a while to get back into the swing of things with Arsenal fans not seeing the best of him until this season and that came after an ankle injury kept him out of the first three games against Brentford, Chelsea and Manchester City.
When fit, Partey is comfortably the best central midfielder at Arteta's disposal. So naturally, it would be a massive boost for the Gunners' top-four hopes if he was to return before the end of the season. Problem is, by the midfielder's own admission, he was a '4/10' prior to enjoying his best run of form as an Arsenal player.
That run coincided with Partey steering clear of injury and starting 10 out of 12 Premier League games in a row. A luxury the Gunners don't have with five fixtures remaining and history suggests that the best approach is to ensure the former Atletico Madrid ace is patient with his recovery to ensure he is fully fit for pre-season and in turn raring to go at the start of the 2022/23 campaign.
