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Can forgotten man Elneny silence Partey-to-Arsenal talk?

The Egyptian's impressive showing upon his return from loan suggests he can provide an interesting, cost-effective option for the Gunners in midfield

It was entirely predictable that former Arsenal boss Arsène Wenger would speak warmly of Mohamed Elneny's performance for the Gunners in the Community Shield. On a chilly London afternoon, the Egypt international produced a redemptive performance that evoked a famous Wenger-ism: he seemed like a new signing.

Some of that was to do with the fact the 28-year-old's last competitive appearance for Arsenal came back in May 2019, in a 3-1 win over Burnley at Turf Moor as part of a heavily rotated starting 11. Following that, he went on to play three times as many minutes in a loan spell for Turkish side Besiktas last season as he had managed in the entirety of 2018/19.

Then there was the Gunners being decidedly understrength. There is a surplus of defenders at the Emirates, but midfielders are alarmingly thin in the ground. With Dani Ceballos' loan deal yet to be renewed, stalwart Granit Xhaka seemed to be lacking a wing-man for the daunting test that Premier League champions Liverpool present. Enter: Elneny.

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