The Ghana Football Association (GFA) has cleared the air on the absence of the first deputy captain of the Black Stars, Thomas Partey from the Black Stars squad currently in Morocco.

Reports on Monday indicated that the Arsenal midfielder had been sacked from training after reporting late for Black Stars duties despite being in Ghana since the Premier League ended on May 23.

According to the official GFA statement, the player traveled to Cape Coast on Thursday and had a meeting with the head coach for about an hour seeking permission to absent himself from the first match due to some personal issues.

It further adds that permission was granted to Partey to absent himself for the Morocco game but will return for the Ivory Coast friendly which comes off on Saturday at Cape Coast.

"Thomas travelled to Cape Coast on Thursday to meet Coach Charles Akonnor over some personal issues. After the meeting which lasted for about an hour, the Coach excused him from the trip to Morocco – and asked him to report to camp for the second game against Ivory Coast. As the 1st Deputy Captain of the Black Stars, Thomas later joined his colleagues in training to show solidarity and support before leaving for Accra. The Arsenal midfielder will therefore team up with the rest of the squad on Thursday when the team returns from Morocco." the official GFA statement stated.