thomas partey He says he is “ready to play” against England on Tuesday after being denied entry to Canada for Ghana’s World Cup opener.
Partey was unable to enter Canada last week due to ongoing criminal proceedings in Britain, after he was charged with seven counts of rape and one count of sexual assault in London between 2020 and 2022. Partey has denied all charges and will attempt to clear his name in a trial next summer.
Ghana won their Group L opener 1-0 against England in Boston on Tuesday and Partey was asked if he was happy to return after his problems in Canada.
“Well, I guess it’s a part of football,” he said. “There are things outside of football that you can’t control. So for me now, I feel OK and I’m ready to play.”
Ghana’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs criticized Partey’s visa denial as an “atrocious and extremely unfair decision”. A Canadian federal judge last week rejected Ghana’s appeal to bring Partey into the country and Canadian officials have said immigration decisions are made on a case-by-case basis regardless of the World Cup.
Partey’s final two group games are in the United States, where he has been granted a visa.
Their first match is against England in Boston, although Ghana boss Carlos Queiroz did not say in a pre-match press conference whether Partey would play.
England players will be expected to shake hands before kick-off, but the Football Association is understood to be leaving it up to individual players.
The match will see the 33-year-old reunite with his former Arsenal teammates Declan Rice And bukayo saka.
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“I’m really happy to see him again,” Partey said. “I hope they play their best and give us a chance to play against the best and try to compete and enjoy the game.”
Ghana are second in Group L heading into Tuesday’s match and will face Croatia in their final group game on Saturday.
Partey said: “It’s not about individual achievement. We’re going to play a game of football.”
“We are 11 players, we are a team. We have to play as a team. Individually if I can play my best game I will be happy, but at the end of the day the whole team needs to be at top level to achieve what you want to achieve.”
Information from PA was used in this report.