Former Arsenal striker Robin van Persie has explained the importance of midfielder Thomas Partey to their squad and warned the Premier League outfit to keep hold of the Ghana international this summer.

The ex-Dutch goal poacher has sent a strong warning to Mikel Arteta that allowing the 30-year-old Black Star to leave North London without a suitable replacement would be detrimental for the Gunners this summer. Van Persie, known for his prolific scoring at Arsenal, commended Partey’s impressive displays in the midfield and highlighted his ability to contribute both in distribution and scoring goals.

“If there is any player in that Arsenal dressing room that impressed me greatly, it is no other person than Thomas Partey. He was great, and you could see his distributions in that Arsenal midfield, and he scores too,” said Van Persie, adding: “Losing such a player without a brilliant replacement will really affect Arsenal, and Arteta knows this. He needs to stay and help them do great next season.”

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Arteta chose to start Partey in Arsenal’s first pre-season friendly as they took on Nurnberg in Germany. Since then, the former Atletico Madrid star was also named in the starting XI for the win over Barcelona, although Declan Rice, who started over him against Manchester United, missed the game against the Catalan giants through injury.

Last summer, Partey was heavily linked with a return to La Liga following rumours of a falling out with Arteta but the Ghanaian stayed put and went on to play a crucial role in Arsenal’s title charge.