Arsenal are closing in on the signing of Jorginho on deadline day…
What’s the word?
That’s according to The Athletic’s David Ornstein, who has provided a major update on the Gunners’ pursuit of the Chelsea midfielder.
“Arsenal advancing towards agreement to sign Jorginho from Chelsea. 31yo Italy midfielder now most likely #DeadlineDay recruit. Acceptance at #AFC that Brighton stance on Moises Caicedo means pursuit of 21yo Ecuadorian is over,” he tweeted.
He then added:
“Arsenal have agreed deal with Chelsea to sign Jorginho. Worth £12m & personal terms in place on contract to summer 2024 + option to extend by 1yr. Expected at #AFC training ground today to undergo medical + complete #DeadlineDay move.”
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Time to forget Caicedo?
Just as the reliable journalist suggests, this all but ends their interest in the Brighton and Hove Albion star, which is hardly a surprise given their mooted £80m asking price – an amount that would shatter the club’s record fee.
The 31-year-old is a vastly experienced leader, having made 213 appearances for the Blues since his £50m move from Napoli in July 2019. During his time at Stamford Bridge, the Brazil-born Italy international has clinched a Champions League winners medal, with that triumph only being 18 months ago.
He’d come at a far cheaper price, you’d imagine and with wages thought to be in the region of £110k-per-week, he wouldn’t be among the Gunners’ top, top earners, with as many as six current stars earning more
Once lauded as a “beast” by writer Mark Worrall, the Blues veteran is very much of a different profile to what Mikel Arteta currently has in Granit Xhaka and Thomas Partey as he’s arguably a more defensive choice than either but he’s a quality candidate that’s capable of dictating games with his passing.
Jorginho remains one of the best players in Europe in this regard – compared his positional peers across the top five divisions, he ranks inside the top 6% for completed and attempted passes, which extends to the top 5% for short and top 7% for medium-range passes. Whilst he even sits among the top 7% for passes into the final third, further highlighting his ability to dictate play with consistency.
Also per FBref, the Italian “game-changer” – in the words of content creator George Benson – even sits among the top 8% for dribbles tackled and the top 10% for ball recoveries, so evidently, he could be capable of playing a large role on the Gunners’ way to, potentially, the Premier League title.
It’s, therefore, time for the Emirates faithful to forget about Caicedo as Ornstein suggests, it’s going to be a move for Jorginho on deadline day instead.
AND in other news, Arsenal could now sign “new Sergio Busquets” in swoop for £53m “baller”…
