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It has almost been a month since Mikel Arteta last spoke publicly about Thomas Partey and his expiring Arsenal contract. Nothing concrete has happened since to give the sense that Arteta's hopes of having his midfielder stay beyond June 30 will be realised.

Partey has been free to talk to clubs outside of England over a pre-contract agreement since January 1. Arsenal, in the meantime, have changed sporting directors with Edu Gaspar leaving at the end of 2024 and Jason Ayto replacing him as interim.

It wasn't until April that Andrea Berta settled into the role. That left him less than three months to hash out the situation with Partey, who is about to come to the end of the five-year deal he signed in 2020 when moving to Arsenal, ironically also from Atletico Madrid.

When the 2024/25 retained list was revealed earlier in June, Arsenal simply stated that Partey was in talks over a new contract. There is a pressing deadline ahead, though.

Partey, of course, can become a free agent and then continue to talk with Arsenal, potentially to sign with them again. However, for all parties, it is beneficial to have clarity sooner rather than later.

Arteta would certainly feel the same. He is currently constructing his squad for next season, when he will attempt to go one step further than finishing second and falling short in cup competitions. Having a defined group of players to work with at the earliest possible opportunity helps everyone.

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That is why getting transfers completed before pre-season is seen as being so key. Partey would be as good as a new signing given his importance to the side.

The Ghanaian may have turned 32 this week but he shrugged off injury problems in 2023/24 - which looked set to curtail his Emirates Stadium career for good - to make 52 appearances last season. In a team that struggled for injuries across the board, he was a mainstay.

The dilemma has been whether tying down someone of his age to another big-money contract is wise financially, especially with the Premier League constraints and rising transfer prices for key targets including Benjamin Sesko. If Partey was to go, though, it would leave Arsenal short.

Martin Zubimendi is set to come in and joins Declan Rice and Partey as someone able to operate in the pivot/No.6 role, but after Jorginho's own contract was ended early so he could play for Flamengo in the Club World Cup, more reinforcements are still necessary. Partey, as someone who Arteta knows and trusts, is an easy answer.

"In regards to Thomas, consistency-wise, it's been his best season," the manager said last month. "I think the way he's played, performed, his availability has been exceptional, and he's a really important player for us."

Considering the impact Partey had in 2022/23, this is lofty praise. Arteta has used it to fuel his campaigning for a new deal, as well. "Yes, there is progress with all the players," he explained towards the end of the season.

"I'll leave that to Andrea and the club to decide and to talk about, The intention is very clear. I'll leave that to Andrea and the club to take a step forward."

Arteta's stance is clear but the direction of travel is not.Arteta has consistently pushed things towards his new right-hand man regarding Partey - "On Thomas, you can waste many minutes with Andrea if you want," he said before the Paris Saint-Germain second leg.

He then started to get a bit shorter with the press. "I already gave the update the other day and I think it's not for me to give any more information about that," he said just days later.

Partey himself has been less committal."I think the first thing is where are you happy and where do you feel at home," he said in an interview in June. "At the end of the day you've been in football, you've been in different teams.

"Then it's about what is your next objective what do you want to achieve next. You still have to look at all this and at the end of the day we all have a family that needs money, this is our mind.

"We are not getting younger. There are a lot of things where you have to look now with a family, where you want them to be happy. When you are young you just play anywhere.

"I'm an Arsenal fan, I can't decide anything and just have to leave it to my agent and the club. Me, I just want to enjoy football."

Arteta wants Partey to stay, but Arsenal are running out of time.