England defender Djed Spence appeared to decline a handshake with Ghana midfielder Thomas Partey ahead of the teams’ World Cup clash in Boston.
As reported by Daily Mail Sport, there had been no discussions inside the Three Lions camp about whether players should greet the former Arsenal midfielder before kick-off, with the England hierarchy choosing to keep the focus firmly on the match.
Although FIFA-run broadcast cameras did not show the incident, most of Thomas Tuchel’s squad either shook hands or exchanged fist bumps with the 33-year-old, who denies seven counts of rape and one count of sexual assault. Spence, the first Muslim to represent England, was the exception.
Partey, a former Arsenal midfielder, was named in Ghana’s starting line-up after missing their opening fixture in Toronto because he was refused a visa to enter Canada.
He is scheduled to answer the allegations at Southwark Crown Court next year.
Pre-match handshakes are a standard part of World Cup protocol, leaving England’s players facing a delicate moment amid wider discussion over the gesture.
Most England players greeted Thomas Partey before their match against Ghana
Djed Spence, however, appeared not to acknowledge the former Arsenal midfielder during the pre-match formalities
Partey was making his 2026 World Cup bow against England in Boston on Tuesday evening
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Officials in Canada had turned down an appeal against the decision not to allow Partey entry at a hearing where it emerged details of the charges had not been declared when an application was made for a visa.
There were loud boos when Partey’s name was flashed up as part of Ghana’s line-up on the huge screen at Boston Stadium from what was an overwhelmingly pro-England crowd.
That said, the pockets of Ghana supporters, some in shirts with his name and number five on the back, cheered louder than they did for any other of their players.
Indeed, some brought homemade placards pledging their support.
During the warm-up there was no interaction between the two squads, however, contact could not be avoided when, following the national anthems, it was time for the handshake.
While cameras cut away from Partey, from a distance it appeared as though Spence, 25, withdrew his hand.
A video shared to social media seemed to back this up, with Partey taking a quick look back at Spence after he passed him.
When asked by Daily Mail sport for his thoughts on the incident, a press officer interjected and said Tuchel could not comment for legal reasons.
Although the live feed of the game showed some of the handshakes, it cut away as Partey approached England’s players
Meanwhile, fans watching the game on TV expressed their bemusement that the world feed of the match hadn’t shown the moment when Partey approached England’s players.
One said: ‘Did they deliberately cut away from the Partey handshake?’
Another added: ‘The camera man bottled showing the England players shaking hands with Thomas Partey,’ before a further fan said: ‘Camera panned away to the fans when Partey was shaking England’s players hands.’
Several others chimed in with similar views, including one who said: ‘Did the English players shake (hands with) Thomas Partey or not? The camera didn’t really show it properly.’
An extra supporter added: ‘The camera changing when they’re doing the handshakes to ignore Partey…’
Despite an initial arrest in July 2022, Partey continued to represent Arsenal until his contract expired at the end of the 2024-25 season.
He is now with Villarreal, in Spain, although he is set to leave the club this summer after they decided not to renew his deal.
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