Arteta vs Simeone: Partey differentiates Arsenal & Atletico boss

The Ghana international completed a move from Spain to England over the summer after the Gunners triggered his €50m release clause.

Thomas Partey has explained the similarities, and a difference, between his playing style under Mikel Arteta and Diego Simeone.

Partey ended his almost decade-long association with Atletico Madrid to join Arsenal in the summer transfer window.

The defensive midfielder signed with the Spanish giants back in 2011, progressed through the ranks from their U-19 side to their B team before finally earning a promotion to the first team in 2015.

Gradually, he came a crucial figure of Simeone’s team and started attracting interest from abroad.

Partey has impressed during his short stay at Arsenal so far, although he has been plagued by injuries due to which he has missed ten games already.

“At Atletico, I played in a similar position. The system is not the same back there, you have to be well-positioned to be able to go around your marker, and here Mikel is helping a lot because I remember, he said you don’t have to be in the same line and opposite the defender,” explained the Ghana international, speaking to Stadium Astro.

“I think both of them have the same mentality, which is winning. Both of them want to be in control, you always have the chance to create in behind and the difference is we don’t give chances, we press high.

“We always do a high press, from the first minute to the last minute, and in Atletico sometimes you have to wait for the opposition to move around you and you hit them on the counter.”