Marcelino Garcia Criticises Thomas Partey after their Champions League Elimination
The Yellow Submarine of Spanish football, Villareal, has been eliminated from the UEFA Champions League after eight games in the league stage.
Villareal finished in 35th position with only one point, which they earned against Juventus at the Estadio de la Ceramica on October 1st, 2025, and lost all of their other league matches.
Marcelino Garcia’s team lost the final match of their campaign to Bayern Leverkusen at the BayArena last Wednesday, ending their hopes of prevailing in the competition.
The Yellow Submarine’s last appearance in the UEFA Champions League was in the 2021-22 season, when they beat Bayern Munich at the quarter-final but were eliminated at the semi-final stage on a 2-3 aggregate to Liverpool.
Despite Villarreal’s prior elimination from the competition, Partey was chosen to begin the last group stage encounter.
The Ghanaian midfielder, Partey’s night, however, was cut short at halftime as part of a double substitution, coming off the game alongside Tajon Buchanan after Leverkusen had already taken a convincing 2-0 lead.
Marcelino spoke candidly with Marca after the final whistle. Marcelino did not mince words, making a stark and unflattering comparison between the player’s current form and his illustrious past.
“Thomas [Partey], I think there’s a world of difference between the Thomas we know at Arsenal and this one. A world of difference,” Marcelino stated.
Marcelino addressed Marca about the time frame in which the Ghanaian midfielder must adjust to the Spanish game and living in the Castellón province of eastern Spain.
The Spaniard stated, “I think is been months, and it’s a tough time for this player to show us what he was or what he is capable of.”
The former Arsenal player will appear at Southwark Crown Court in London on November 2nd, 2026, for a trial even though he has pleaded not guilty to various accusations of rape and sexual assault.
Story by Attakorah (Pramaso)
