Arsenal have been looking at midfield targets for a while now with the likes of Houssem Aouar and Thomas Partey being linked predominantly. However, with negotiations still going on, the club are also starting to look at alternatives such as Jorginho (source – Sky Sports).
Jorginho is a 28-year-old Italian-Brazilian who plays for Chelsea and earns £110,000 per week right now. He started his youth career at Hellas Verona in 2007. In 2010, he was moved to the senior team but was loaned immediately to Sambonifacese. On his return, he became a regular feature in the Verona squad.
He played a total of 96 games for the club and helped them gain promotion to Serie A. He scored 11 and assisted 8 goals. Napoli signed him in 2014 as he went on to become their lynchpin for more than four seasons. He made over 150 appearances and contributed to 20 goals (6G + 14A).
Finally, he moved to Chelsea in 2018 along with manager Maurizio Sarri. Jorginho struggled in his first season as he looked a bit slow for the fast-paced nature of the Premier League. His form improved over the last season and is now one of Frank Lampard’s most trusted players. He has made 100 appearances for them to date, scoring 10 and assisting 3 goals (source – Transfermarkt).
Jorginho chose to play for Italy even though he was born in Brazil. He has played 23 times for them so far, and has scored 4 goals too.
While Arsenal would have liked a defensive midfielder who can drop deep and protect the backline, they could also do with a pass master like Jorginho; someone who can keep playing those short passes and recycle the ball from defence to midfield.
They don’t have anyone else who can do that. Ceballos is mostly involved in the creative areas while Xhaka is more of a no-nonsense tackler. Jorginho could be the final piece in their midfield jigsaw and complete the picture.
It’s very hard to imagine an important player like Jorginho make the switch between direct rivals. But we can’t entirely rule it out as both clubs have conducted business before. Players like Ashley Cole and more recently, David Luiz and Willian have crossed the divide.
Arsenal could well use a player like Jorginho. Mikel Arteta could have a genuinely good midfield on his hands if somehow a deal could be brokered to sign the midfield star.
