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Meet Thomas Partey- The most outstanding Ghanaian player abroad
Thomas Partey is the most promising Ghanaian player abroad currently.
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He was born on 13 June, 1993 at Odumasi Krobo, a town in the Eastern region of Ghana.
The Atletico Madrid star is the oldest of eight children of his parents
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Thomas Partey’s football prowess was noticed in the early stages of his life and he was fortunate to play under his father who was a juvenile football trainer at Krobo Odumase until age nine.
Partey had the chance to play for a colts team in his neigbourhood after age nine and began to set his eyes on becoming a professional player.
He joined Tema Youth, a division one league side and inspired them to secure promotion to the Ghanaian topflight league.
His hard work paid off when he was given the chance to go for trial at Atletico Madrid upon a recommendation to a scout who had never seen him play. He hit the mark and was recruited into the team’s youth side.
According to Thomas Partey in an interview with Independence UK, he left Ghana for Atletico Madrid without informing his family members because of the bond between them- they would have pleaded with him not to leave.
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Thomas Partey joined the youth team of Atletico Madrid in 2012- He joined the U-18 team, before he graduated to the team’s U-19 side.
Diego Simeone, his Argentine coach recognized his effort and promoted him to the mainstream team, before he was loaned to Real Mallorca in the 2012-13 La Liga season.
Thomas Partey quickly adapted to the La Liga. He excelled while at Real Mallorca, scoring five goals in 37 appearances and the following season he was handed another loan term at Almeria in order to get much playing time.
Simeone, recalled the Ghanaian box-to-box midfielder to Atletico Madrid in the 2015-16 La Liga season. He hit the ground running by becoming one of the favourites of the coach, coming in to play in both defensive and offensive midfield roles as Atletico Madrid reached the final of the UEFA Champions League, losing to rivals, Real Madrid on penalties.
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Thomas Partey struggled to cement a starting place in the Atletico Madrid setup, the following season. But, he never gave up as he fought for a place and finally rediscovered his form at the latter part of the season and in the 2017-18 he became a regular player at Atletico Madrid, marshalling the watertight midfield of the Madrid outfit.
Partey played a key role when Atletico Madrid won the UEFA Europa League. He was subsequently named the Sports Writers Association (SWAG) player of the year 2018 and was also voted as the best player in maiden Ghana football awards.
National team football
Thomas Partey trained with the Black Satellites team that represented Ghana in the 2013 FIFA World Cup, but he failed to make the cut for the finals in Turkey.
In May 2016, Thomas was called up for the first time to the Senior National Football Team of Ghana Ghana by Israeli manager Avram Grant, ahead of a 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification match against Mauritius. He made his debut on 5 June, replacing Frank Acheampong for the final 11 minutes of a 2–0 away win that booked the Black Stars' position in the finals. On 5 September, 2017, Thomas scored his first international hattrick in a 5-1 win against Congo in a 2018 World Cup Qualification match.
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Thomas Partey represented Ghana in the 2017 African Cup of Nations, which Ghana finished fourth.
He has been tipped to take over the captaincy of the Black Stars when Asamoah Gyan calls time out on international football.
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