Ghanaian international Thomas Partey faced his first rape charge just days after leaving Arsenal last summer.
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Published March 13, 2026
Former Arsenal player Thomas Partey intends to plead not guilty to two new charges of rape, his lawyer said in a London court on Friday.
The 32-year-old Ghanaian midfielder, who currently plays for Spanish club Villarreal, is awaiting trial separately on five counts of rape relating to two women and one count of sexual assault relating to a third woman.
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The new charges were brought after another woman alleged Partey raped her twice on the same day in December 2020. The new charges came after the first set of charges were made public, according to a court hearing Friday.
Mr Partey was not required to attend Friday’s preliminary conference at Westminster Magistrates’ Court. His lawyer Emma Fenn has indicated that he intends to plead not guilty to both charges. The next court date in the case is April 10.
Mr Partey has pleaded not guilty to the first charge and will stand trial at Southwark Crown Court in November. According to prosecutors, these crimes were committed from 2021 to 2022.
The midfielder joined Arsenal from Atletico Madrid in 2020.
He was first charged in July last year, just days after his contract with Arsenal expired. Villarreal signed him in August, two days after he was granted bail.
Ghana have qualified for the World Cup and are in the same group as England, Croatia and Panama.
Partey appeared in three World Cup qualifying matches in September and October. He has played over 50 games for Ghana.
