Villarreal manager Marcelino Garcia has taken a huge swipe at Ghanaian midfielder Thomas Partey following his inability to find his form at the club stating he really isn’t mentally ready like he was informed earlier.
The 32-year-old joined the Yellow Submarines as a free agent last summer on a two-year deal but has honestly struggled to find his grounds and bring in his ‘A’ game like he did during his time at Atletico Madrid and Arsenal.
Partey, since arriving at the Estadio la Ceramica, hasn’t really had enough game time having come on as a substitute in most of their matches and is currently even falling behind 17-year-old Carlos Marcia in the team’s options in midfield.
The versatile middleman despite the struggled has managed nineteen games in all competitions; fourteen in the Laliga and five in the UEFA Champions League.
In a post-match interview after their defeat to Bayer Leverkusen in the midweek, Marcelino Garcia really spoke his mind saying Thomas Partey, who never returned after half-time in that game, is completely different from the one he use to know.
He further added his recent court case has been impactful on him and that he isn’t mentally ready to play at the highest level right now.
"There's a world of difference between the [#16] we knew at Arsenal and the current one. You can't play at this pace in today's football. It's been 6 months now, and he's had enough time to show us what he's capable of.
“We are talking about a player who was brought here to provide experience and stability. Instead, what do we have? We have a player who is mentally elsewhere. I am tired of making excuses. I am tired of the press conferences being about court dates instead of corner kicks.
“You cannot have five rape charges and a sexual assault charge following you into the dressing room and expect to play at the highest level. It is a cloud that covers everything. I was told he was 'mentally prepared.' He is not. He is a shadow."
Thomas Partey has been on the wanted list of Saudi clubs for years now and many believe he won’t exceed this season at Villarreal as it is very clear he isn’t in the manager’s plans at the moment.
He will hope to make the Black Stars squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup in the summer.
