Arsenal has shocked fans by showing evidence that it continued to field Ghana national team player Thomas Partey (32) for three years despite being aware of his allegations of sexual assault.
According to the global outlet The Athletic on the 11th (Korea time), "Arsenal continued to consistently field Partey in the first team even after being aware of the sexual crime investigation into him." In particular, it has been revealed that Arsenal engaged in contract extension negotiations with Partey even while knowing about the police investigation and the prosecutor's review of charges.
Partey transferred from Atlético Madrid to Arsenal in October 2020 and appeared in a total of 167 matches. He left the team when his contract expired on June 30. However, just four days after the contract ended, on July 4, Partey was officially charged with five counts of rape and one count of sexual assault. The allegations are said to involve a total of three women and occurred between 2021 and 2022, raising concerns.
According to the media, the first police report against Partey was received in August 2021, and in September of that year, one of the victims directly informed Arsenal about the incident. Subsequently, the police officially notified Arsenal of the investigation, and the club was aware that the case had been passed to the prosecutor for review of charges.
However, contrary to Arsenal's statements that it was "taking the matter very seriously," it continued to field Partey. He actively appeared in promotional social media content and even sought to extend his contract until the summer of 2025. Last season, Arsenal utilized Partey in as many as 52 matches.
Manager Mikel Arteta noted in a press conference in May, "This has been Partey's best season," publicly expressing his desire for the player to remain, seemingly without concern. Although there were voices of concern and resistance within the club, decisions were repeatedly ignored. Critics also point out that despite protests from fan communities and women's rights organizations, the club disregarded them.
The issue is evaluated as having surpassed simple moral condemnation. Despite the fact that, under British law, real-name disclosure is prohibited until charges are brought, the victimized women are reported to have faced ongoing threats and mockery on social media. One victim even testified that "the threats were much worse on days he scored."
Up until now, Arsenal has not shown a specific stance regarding the incident. It simply repeats that it cannot comment due to ongoing legal proceedings.
Legal experts point out that, under the Premier League standard contract, there are many restrictions for clubs to suspend players with pay. However, they emphasized that there was no obligation to necessarily field Partey.
Ultimately, it has been criticized that Arsenal's continued use of Partey was merely a minimal management effort to avoid legal responsibility and did not align with the club's philosophy or ethics.
Arsenal promotes the slogan that it will "do the right thing even when no one is watching." However, this media outlet pointed out that in this case, it cannot escape the evaluation that it did nothing despite everyone watching.
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