Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta during his recent press conference did not rule out the possibility of new signing Thomas Partey and defender Kieran Tierney travelling with the squad to face Manchester City on Saturday.
Partey’s Arsenal debut could happen over the weekend after the Ghanian completed a £45m move from Atletico Madrid on deadline day.
Thomas Partey arrived at the Gunners’ training ground for the first time on Tuesday after fulfilling his international commitments with Ghana, and could make his debut against Manchester City.
Arteta, however, said Partey’s fitness will determine whether he will make the squad after he comes through training sessions on Thursday and Friday.
“Today he will have his first training session. He will need to go quickly. He wants to play. We will see [on Saturday]. You see players adapting really quickly and others taking a long time,” says Arteta on Thursday morning.
“I’ve seen the buzz around the place. The fans are really happy, I’ve seen some really positive reactions. The same with the team and staff. We have rated him for a long time.”
Kieran Tierney, on the other hand, was ordered to self-isolate for 14 days from Tuesday after he was deemed to have come in close contact with Scotland team-mate Stuart Armstrong who tested positive for coronavirus.
However, Arsenal have not ruled the left-back out of Saturday’s game and hope to learn if they can earn special dispensation regarding the defender’s availability to play.
“This is getting very complicated when we send players abroad and lose control. Some authorities have different regulations to the ones in the Premier League,” Arteta adds.
“We are still having some discussions and hopefully we will have more news this afternoon.”
