Experienced football administrator George Afriyie has given his opinion on why Thomas Partey sometimes struggles to perform at his best when playing for the Black Stars.
Speaking in an interview with 3Sports, Afriyie noted that one of the reasons is that Partey is sometimes not played in the right position.
He said, "It depends on how a coach wants to parade his players. It depends on the set of players he brings around him. So, it would be very difficult to compare Partey in Arsenal to Partey in Ghana because you need to consider the materials around him at Arsenal and compare that to Ghana."
Afriyie drew a comparison between Partey and Michael Essien, stating that what Essien did for Chelsea was not the same as what he did for the Black Stars, but he delivered when it mattered most. He also cited an example of Partey being pushed up front in a No.8 or No.10 position in a game against Congo in Brazzaville, where he scored three goals.
George Afriyie added, "So for me, it is the way we position him and the roles we assign him. Partey has always had the desire and shown commitment that he wants to play for Ghana."
In recent times, Partey has received criticism from Ghanaians for underperforming in his last few assignments for the Black Stars. However, he will have the opportunity to redeem himself in the upcoming doubleheader encounter of the AFCON qualifiers against Angola.