Mikel Arteta gives worrying fitness update on Arsenal star who ‘felt something’ in 1-1 draw with Brentford ahead of Real Madrid showdown

Thomas Partey is a doubt for Arsenal‘s Champions League quarter-final second leg against Real Madrid after picking up an unspecified knock in their 1-1 draw against Brentford on Saturday.

The midfielder, who opened the scoring for the Gunners with a second-half strike, was substituted off on 69 minutes.

It’s a major concern ahead of Wednesday’s showdown with the 31-year-old all but certain to start against the Spanish giants if he were to be available.

‘He (Partey) felt something so we didn’t want to take any risks,’ said Mikel Arteta.

When asked if Partey will be fit for Wednesday, Arteta added: ‘We don’t know, I haven’t spoken to the doctors yet. So they will check him now and see how he is.’

Arteta admitted post-match that he knew several players would not be able to see out the full 90 minutes, although Partey’s withdrawal was not planned.

Mikel Arteta admitted the midfielder’s withdrawal in the 1-1 draw with Brentford was unplanned

‘We had an idea because we know certain players couldn’t finish the game. We didn’t expect the issue with Thomas and we had to take him out,’ said Arteta.

Jorginho was also substituted while clutching his shoulders in the latter stages of the game but the club have not provided an update on his condition.

Partey impressed at right back and scored his fourth goal of the season.

Declan Rice raced through the middle on the counter-attack before teeing up his team-mate, who finished coolly beyond Brentford keeper Mark Flekken.