Former Ghana manager Avram Grant has told Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta what he can expect from Thomas Partey.
The 27-year-old is the latest signing at the Emirates after a deadline day switch from Atletico Madrid.
He had been the main priority for Arteta, who was desperate to add some steel to his midfield.
Partey has been earmarked as one of the best defensive midfielders in Europe after a stellar campaign in La Liga.
And Grant knows all about him, having coached him at international level for Ghana, and he had a word of advice for the Gunners coach.
He told The Sun : “I’d ask the Arsenal fans to give him a few weeks just to get used to English football, because it is still played differently in the Premier League to anywhere else, even if there are more foreign players now.
"But he will prove a good signing, perfect for what Mikel Arteta is trying to do.
“When you need him to hold the ball up, he can do that and he is a great fit for what Arteta is trying to make his team.
“If you ask him to play wide, he can but it’s not his position.
“He is a central midfielder, who will win the ball and play the right pass forward and can see the pitch, tactically disciplined as well and committed to his team.
“And he will make a big difference to Arsenal, just like he did at Atletico.
"He is a really good signing, just what they needed.”
Partey became the sixth signing at the Emirates after the arrivals of Willian, Pablo Mari, Cedric Soares, Runar Alex Runarsson and Gabriel Magalhaes, as well as another loan for Dani Ceballos.
Grant added: “From the first time I watched him, I saw a player who was very strong and good on the ball, who understands the game very well.
“Even when he was relatively young and inexperienced, he knew what he needed to do in terms of possession and position, how to get in the right place at the right time.
“But he’s also a very good boy, on and off the pitch, with a great character.
"He wants to do his job and he is very consistent.
“Thomas doesn’t tend to have good days and bad days because you know every match what you will get from him, which is his best for the team.”
