Arsenal Owners Lend Big Financial Hand To Close Partey Deal

Arsenal FC finally got Thomas Partey from Atletico Madrid although the process of doing so was not easy. As most know, the Gunners were strapped for cash and had to unload some of its players for it to push through. But it turns out that Mikel Arteta needed to make a special request from the owners to close the deal.

Among the players who had to be let go include Matteo Guendouzi, Mesut Ozil, Sead Kolasinac and Mohamed Elneny. Unfortunately, funds from potential transactions involving any of these players were deemed not enough. Hence, Arteta needed to ask owner Stan Kroenke for additional funds to close the Partey deal, The Athletic reported.

Arsenal owners approved the request of Arteta, refinancing the club’s current debt and also providing funds to complete the transfer. It was proof that management has faith in Arteta’s vision.

To recall, Arsenal pulled off the deal on the last day of the transfer deadline. The Gunners made the push, meeting Atletico’s $58 million fee to activate the release clause for the 27-year-old defender. But in a report from ESPN, it appears Los Indios was not happy with Partey with the way the last-minute deadline transaction went.

Atletico was informed of the deal roughly half-an-hour before the transfer deadline. It turns out that representatives from Arsenal were at their Madrid headquarters at the time to exercise the release clause. In all, Los Indios may have felt they were pressed to a corner and not given ample time to make a stand.

Also, the fact that Atletico had tried to make multiple offers to keep the Ghanaian player. But similar to past pitches, Partey seemed pretty inclined to make the jump to Emirates Stadium.

The Partey deal finally seals months of courtship done by Arsenal. The Gunners tried to offer some of their players for the Ghanaian player but nothing materialized. Alexandre Lacazette was singled out as the player that Atletico wanted but Arteta was unwilling to let him go. Matteo Guendouzi was offered but Los Indios were not interested in the temperamental French player.

These were what went down before that fateful transfer deadline occurrence. Atletico is unhappy but the Gunners were able to pull it off with some special financial request made by Arteta to the owners.