July 16th 2023.
Arsenal set off on their pre-season tour of the United States on Sunday, with much anticipation and excitement. However, Thomas Partey, one of the club's key players, was not amongst the 27 players who boarded the flight from London Stansted.
Partey has been linked with a move away from Arsenal this summer, and speculation of his departure was further fuelled when he was absent from the squad for their pre-season friendly against Nurnberg last Thursday.
Arsenal have not commented on the Ghanaian midfielder's absence from the tour, but have said that they expect Partey and Emile Smith Rowe to join the squad next week. Smith Rowe has been granted an extended break after playing for England in the Under-21 European Championship this summer.
Nicolas Pepe, Cedric Soares, Albert Sambi Lokonga, and Nuno Tavares, who all left Arsenal on loan last season, have also stayed behind. Reiss Nelson, who signed a new long-term contract with Arsenal earlier this month, was also not part of the travelling squad due to injury.
The squad that set off on Sunday includes record signing Declan Rice and Jurrien Timber, who completed his move from Ajax on Friday.
Arsenal's first match of the tour will be against an MLS All-Stars team managed by Wayne Rooney in Washington D.C. on July 19, followed by a showdown with Manchester United in New Jersey on July 22. The tour will conclude with a fixture against Barcelona in Los Angeles on July 26.
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