Head coach of Villarreal, Marcelino GarcÃa Toral in a pre-match press conference defends Partey ahead of their Champions League clash against Tottenham Hotspur on Tuesday 16, 2025.
Marcelino push back against what he called interpretations swirling around the 32-year-old, insisting Partey remains totally innocent until proven otherwise.
“We're interpreting things and talking about a player Partey] who could be totally innocent. We're playing a game of football where the important thing is football. This [England] is where football was invented, after all.”
Partey joined the Yellow Submarine on August as a free-agent after his contract with Arsenal Fc just days after being charged with five counts of rape and one of sexual assault, allegations he vehemently denies.
The incidents reportedly occurred between 2021-2022 during his Gunners tenure but due to conditional bail granted, he’s been a fixture in La Liga, and also represented Ghana in the ongoing FIFA World Cup qualifiers.