Partey earns Simeone's praise after Man-of-The-Match performance in La Liga

Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone wants Thomas Teye Partey to raise the bar even higher after watching the Ghana international put up a Man-of-The-Match display against Valencia on Saturday.

The midfielder has shown fine form in recent games, scoring an accumulated five goals in his last four matches for club and country.

The 24-year-old netted in the 5-1 victory over Las Palmas before the international break, scored four times in Ghana's 2018 World Cup qualifying double-header against Congo and was named Man-of-The-Match in Atletico's goalless draw at Valencia in La Liga.

"[Thomas] is improving, he is full of motivation and ambition," Simeone said after Saturday's stalemate at Estadio de Mestalla.

"I hope he keeps improving, he is young and works hard.

"We were good in the second half at Girona, and good at Las Palmas.

"We played well today, we just lacked a goal. In our play we showed important things.

"It was a good game between two teams who work in a similar way. We had chances to score, but the all-important goal did not come."

Partey will be seeking to make the most of his opportunities this season, having been reduced to a squad player in the last two campaigns.

Following loan spells at Mallorca and Almeria, the Odumase Krobo-born was drafted into Simeone's set-up in 2015-16 where he made 13 league appearances involving three starts.

He improved his stats last term with 16 topflight outings, six of which he featured from the blast of the referee's whistle.

The signs look promising for the Black Star this season. Having missed the league opener against Girona due to suspension, he has featured in two subsequent games for the Red and Whites.