Thomas Partey #5

Profile

Part of the Ghana side for a decade, Partey is at his second World Cup. A powerful defensive midfielder, he won the Europa League and appeared in the 2016 Champions League final with Atlético Madrid, and became the most expensive Ghanaian player ever when he joined Arsenal four years later for £45m. Four days after he left Arsenal for Villarreal in 2025 he was charged with five counts of rape and one count of sexual assault relating to alleged incidents between 2021 and 2022. Partey pleaded not guilty to all those charges at Southwark crown court in September, where a trial date was set for 2 November 2026. In February of this year he faced two new counts of rape after another woman came forward to police. In April he pleaded not guilty to those two allegations of rape. His defence lawyer, Jenny Wiltshire, said: “Thomas Partey continues to deny all charges against him. He has cooperated with the police throughout.”

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