Arsenal star could create a transfer battle between Barcelona and Atletico Madrid | OneFootball

The midfielder is set to become a free agent at the end of the season and there is no sign of the Gunners offering him a new contract at this stage.

The defensive midfielder’s time at the club has been affected by injuries and since joining the club, he has missed a considerable amount of time because of his fitness issues.

The Ghanaian midfielder joined Arsenal from Atletico Madrid to provide them the physical presence and strength they lacked in the middle of the park.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has a number of options for his midfield position now, with Declan Rice, Jorginho and Mikel Merino joining the club after Partey.

The emergence of Rice and the arrival of Merino has made it clear that the manager prefers these two midfielders over Partey.

Along with them, Martin Odegaard will form the trio of the midfield that Arteta will deploy at the club.

Thomas Partey could leave Arsenal at the end of the season. (Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images)

Barcelona need a new defensive midfielder and they have been unable to find one since the departure of Sergio Busquets from the club.

The current options that manager Hansi Flick has at the club are inexperienced and that is why they are looking at someone like Partey who can provide quality as well as experience.

Atletico Madrid need balance in the midfield and their poor recent results have shown that reinforcements are needed in the team.

Thomas Partey will have limited playing time at Arsenal

Partey has prior experience of playing in La Liga with his time at Atletico Madrid.

He could be a valuable addition to the La Liga sides and a return back to Spain could just be the spark that his career needs at this stage.

Due to injury issues at Arsenal this season, Partey has been a regular starter at the club but with a fully fit squad, he will drop down to the bench again.