Ghana deputy captain Thomas Partey paid an emotional tribute to the late compatriot Christian Atsu after helping Arsenal complete a stunning comeback on Saturday.
Atsu sadly fell victim to last month’s disastrous earthquake in Turkey and Syria, which has claimed the lives of more than 50,000 people. Partey played alongside Atsu at the international level for Ghana, with the latter earning 65 caps before passing away aged 31.
Partey was keen to pay his respects to his former team-mate after Arsenal recovered from two goals down to beat Bournemouth 3-2 at the Emirates. The midfielder scored Arsenal’s first goal on the way to recovery but could not fully reveal a message to Atsu on his undershirt.
After the result was confirmed, Partey took off his Arsenal shirt with a message that read: “Rest well, Christian Atsu.”
Interestingly, Partey scored on the day that a One-Week Observation was being held back home in Accra in memory of Atsu, with whom he shared 17 international appearances during his career. During the event, March 17 was announced as the date for Atsu’s final funeral rites.
— Ferdinand A Baah
