Ghana and Villarreal midfielder, Thomas Partey, on Wednesday pleaded not guilty to allegations of raping two women and sexually assaulting a third.
Naijaonpoint reports that the 32-year-old, who left Arsenal in June after the expiration of his contract, faces five counts of rape and one charge of sexual assault relating to incidents said to have occurred between 2021 and 2022.
Partey appeared before Southwark Crown Court, where he briefly confirmed his name and date of birth before entering not-guilty pleas to each charge.
At the end of the short hearing, Judge Christopher Hehir confirmed that the trial would begin on November 2, 2026.
“Your trial will take place at this court on November 2 of next year, 2026. I appreciate that is quite a long way in advance. As you may appreciate, the crown courts have a huge backlog of work, which means that trials do take a long time to come on. Because you have bail, effectively you are sitting behind a queue of people in prison who are waiting to be tried,” the judge explained.
Partey was granted bail under existing conditions: he must not contact the three women involved and must notify police of any permanent address change or international travel.
The midfielder was formally charged just four days after leaving Arsenal. The club has declined to comment on the case.
An Arsenal spokesperson had said, “The player’s contract ended on June 30. Due to ongoing legal proceedings, the club is unable to comment on the case.”
Partey’s appearance in court came less than 24 hours after he featured in Villarreal’s 1-0 Champions League defeat to Tottenham in London.
Partey joined Arsenal from Atletico Madrid in 2020 in a deal worth around £45m ($61m). He went on to make 167 appearances for the Gunners, scoring nine goals, including 52 games last season, during which he scored four goals.
The Ghana international, who has represented his country more than 50 times, signed for Villarreal last month.