Arsenal coach Mikel Arteta has been waxing lyrical about his summer signing Thomas Partey after he made a return to action on Monday night in their 3-0 win over Newcastle.

The Ghanaian International had been sidelined for a while after suffering an injury and was handed his first start in a long time in the Newcastle game after coming from the bench for 21 minutes against Crystal Palace.

Partey supplied the assist for Arsenal's first goal which was scored by skipper Pierre Emerick Aubameyang.

Speaking after the game, Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta says the team has been missing Thomas Partey and he hopes to get him fit for the remainder of the season.

“We have been missing Tommy and he has this presence, this aura, that makes him a special player for us,” Mikel Arteta said after the game. “Hopefully we can keep him fit because we can all see the difference he makes on the side and I think he was growing and getting better and better as the game was growing and evolving," he added.

“Yes, he can [have more attacking freedom here than at Atletico Madrid], technically he is more than capable of doing that and he’s great in both transitional moments as well.

“It will take him some time to understand a different way of thinking or doing [things] than what he was doing with the previous team he was involved in. He has all the characteristics that we need to make us better, that’s for sure.

“His dynamism, his physicality, his creativity and the presence that nature has given him. You have that person on the pitch and you are able to dominate a game when it is needed and Thomas has this quality,” he added.