Campbell points the finger at Partey as Arsenal ‘fall in trap’
Kevin Campbell has pointed the finger at Thomas Partey after Arsenal drew 2-2 against Crystal Palace on Monday night.
Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, the ex-Gunners and Everton striker is adamant the 28-year-old is solely to blame for Christian Benteke’s equaliser.
Both of Crystal Palace’s goals came from turnovers at the Emirates, with Partey dispossessed by Jordan Ayew for the first.
As quoted by Football.London (18th October), Mikel Arteta bemoaned his midfielders’ “lack of composure” and wastefulness on the ball.
The draw leaves the Gunners 12th in the Premier League after eight games.
When asked by Football Insider‘s for his assessment of what went wrong for Palace’s first goal, Campbell said:
“Well, you cannot blame Gabriel because once Benteke picks it up he has so much room. It is very difficult to stop someone when they have the width of the 18-yard box to shift the ball. It is hard. You need a bit of help.
“Unfortunately, if you allow the opposition to turn the ball over in a dangerous area you are in trouble. That was Thomas Partey’s fault.
“He is a top, top player but Palace trapped him. They won it in a dangerous area and we paid the price.
“It was all our own doing. If you don’t give the ball away you take away a lot of Palace’s threat. They set the trap up and Arsenal fell into it.”
In other news, Campbell has revealed he fears Arsenal may sign Maitland-Niles 2.0 after a ‘nonsensical’ transfer report.