According to David Ornstein of The Athletic, Arsenal have offered Jorginho a ‘fresh deal’ which the Italy international is expected to sign.
The 32-year-old joined the Gunners from Chelsea in January 2023 on an 18-month contract with the Gunners retaining an option to extend by a further 12 months.
The Press Association reports that said clause elapsed when the player failed to make the necessary appearance threshold this season (it must have been high). All the same, we’re keen to keep the player, seemingly for an even longer period, hence a return to the negotiation table.
🚨 EXCL: Arsenal offer Jorginho new contract & midfielder expected to sign it. Existing terms run until June with option for another year, but fresh deal rewards 32yo’s importance to #AFC
➕ Edu & Ayto make Saudi Arabia trip (no players / deals discussed) https://t.co/tloSTwOWnB— David Ornstein (@David_Ornstein) April 30, 2024
Jorginho has made 35 appearances in all competitions this season, often playing alongside Declan Rice in a double-pivot.
Since Thomas Partey returned to fitness, the Italian has grown accustomed to starting matches on the bench, however, with the Ghana international and Mohamed Elneny expected to depart in the summer, Arteta clearly sees a role for Jorginho.
More than anything, Jorginho brings a wealth of experience to a young squad. He led Italy to success in the European Championships in 2021 and was vital to Chelsea’s Champions League win in the same year.
Who knows, as he edges towards the end of his career, Arsenal may also believe Jorginho has a future role at the club as a coach. He completed his UEFA B coaching license earlier this year.
Surely we should be tying Elneny down first, he is irreplaceable….
…he keeps the bench very warm…
He makes a lovely cuppa
He IS the new Elneny… Except much better quality 😎
Elneny doesn’t even make the bench
The Nenymeister builds the bench
Let’s say Partey goes and Jorginho stays…………..
Has anyone here got an idea who out there might come in, to fulfill our midfield requirements?
I like Amadou Onana at Everton. One of the fastest players in the league. Buy guys who are huge with great engines (Rice, Havertz) has gone pretty well this season. Also think he is underrated technically.
But gut feeling is that it will be Bruno Guimares. He’s in prime age and gettable (for 80M or so) and one of the best midfielders in the league.
Good news, he is a valuable member of the squad!
Key is moving him to be a squad player rather than basically a first teamer this season. He’s a good rotational piece, but this feels like an area we can really level up the team, particularly by protecting us better with a more counter attacking resistant midfielder. Just in a couple games with Partey you can see the potential of having a more mobile#6 in freeing up both Rice and odegaard to play with more freedom both on and off ball. I’d maybe even suggest a new midfielder is equally or maybe even a little bit more important than another… Read more »
He has started 10 league games this season, so he already has been a squad player
I feel like Arteta is really trying to mimic the Pep model of giving players sporadic bursts of game time and then resting them for periods. I’ve noticed Pep will often leave the likes of Grealish, Kovacic and Alvarez out for a few weeks and then use them intensively for a month or so. Just when you think a player must be out of favour, he comes back in and makes key contributions. This is how you win the league these days. You have to save some players legs for the run in. I feel like Jorginho hasn’t seen a… Read more »
I think a fit Partey is just better than Jorginho but to have a player of that calibre in reserve is why we are where we are. I agree with the pep thing. It’s why guys like Mahrez were always sharp. With the players fit Arteta has freely rotated jesus,trossard and Martinelli especially.
Jorginho is the kind of player you need in the squad if you want to make runs at multiple trophies – high high quality but with realistic game time expectations given his age. Feels like the right move.
I wish Arteta was doing that on purpose, unfortunately I think with him it’s mostly been dictated by who’s fit and sometimes tactics. Partey was chosen for Spurs because he’s finally fit and played well against Chelsea, and also probably because Arteta knew it would be the sort of wild up and down game for which Jorgi is less suited… prior to that I think he played Jorgi almost every game unless the fixtures were too congested for his older body to handle.
His older body has held out quite well like his performances given the many games he’s played injury free all season, like Havertz, chelsea fans were very dismissive of him, to old, no pace, can only play a sideway ball, I think he’s been a lot better player than they realised, not only that his professionalism has certainly rubbed off on our young squad, Miki has remarked upon it, thoroughly deserves another year with extension option for what he brings.
Arteta has proven himself a man with a great football brain. That he does what appears to be akin to what Pep does isn’t necessarily him mimicking his model for me.
Some of us may have unconsciously bought into this pundits’ penchant for seeing Pep’s shadow over Arteta’s every move just because he worked with him.
MA & Edu have done few bad deals some even shady too; but this one of Jorginho is a tad genius. Typically, he employs him in games which suits his strength thereby got the best out of him.
Which one are shady ?
Willian?!
Nothing wrong with the Willian deal (checks notes)
Willian & Soares!
I think any time Willian comes up we should also remember he RETURNED some of his wages. An unbelievable act which didn’t get enough attention and the sole reason why I’ll never badmouth him.
Actually he agreed to terminate his contract so didn’t quite pay back Arsenal any money. Still, is there even one other example of a player leaving that much money on a contract? He had every right to that money, could’ve hung around to get paid. Could’ve negotiated a buyout much closer the full wages owed.
TBH Willian wasn’t great for us but he’s been quite useful for Fulham and was very good for Chelsea. He also doesn’t seem to be a dick so I could see some logic in signing him when we did.
How about signing on fees, did he return that?
No, but why on earth should he? Terminating a contract like that is hugely rare. He would have been in his rights to demand a big fee in order for arsenal to get him off their books but he didn’t. Yes, he’s very wealthy already but there was money that he was entitled to that he walked away from. Credit where it’s due.
No brainer really. He never had much pace in the first place, so there is no reason he can’t maintain the same level for another few seasons.
Does he need much pace in his position?
I would understand if he were a winger or a striker but a fill in central midfielder with bags of experience?
There’s actually a contrary school of thought that argues less athletic players age more quickly. Saying someone “doesn’t have much pace” is kind of misleading because pace is relative, compared to 90% of the population of this planet across all ages Jorginho is probably pretty fast, so if he drops down from the 90th to even the 85th percentile that could be enough to make him essentially a cripple in footballing terms, not quick enough to even do basic things. If you look at outfield players who’ve played into their later 30’s they’re mostly ones who were pretty quick and… Read more »
No-one told Giroud less athletic players age more quickly
Come on, Giroud wasn’t the fastest but he wasn’t Jorginho either, he had ok pace and athleticism. And other physical gifts e.g. being tall, strong or insanely handsome can also help.
Fair point, but if the crux of your game is reliant on pace, and you lose that by a percent or two, you’re done
For sure, like what happened to Michael Owen or Marc Overmars… the ones who last longest tend to have both athleticism and a wide range of skills.
Intelligence might help too. Something Michael Owen was certainly not blessed with. Not much of it anyway.
Haha true. But then how did Gary Neville have such a long career?🤔
He made himself appear less thick by being mates with David Beckham thus he flew under the radar.
Modric never had pace so he’s not a good example. Neither did ibrahimovic, who played until 41 nor Pepe, who is still playing at 41.
Not sure you’ve been watching football very long, Modric was really quick in his early 20’s, maybe you forgot he played as a winger for Spurs. Pepe too was pretty athletic when he was young, and he and Zlatan both have incredible physiques
Modric was bought as a 10, played a bit (out of position) at lw and was eventually moved back to cm. Not exactly a pacy winger. I seem to remember there actually being lots of criticism of his physicality when he joined the PL actually. And, Ok I’ll bite, I’ve been watching football for 30+ years at this point, not that it has any relevance to this discussion really in an age where players attributes are increasingly recorded and well documented.
https://www.sportbible.com/football/news-zlatan-ibrahimovic-recorded-the-second-fastest-sprint-in-milan-return-20200112
apparently Zlatan too still was one of the fastest players on the pitch in Serie A even at 38, imagine a decade earlier
Let me just quote your source right back at you “At 38-years-old, Zlatan has never been known for his pace and more of a target-man striker with beautiful ball-control and technique”
Not known for it doesn’t mean he was particularly slow. You seem to see things in some sort of binary, either “has pace” I.e. Theo Walcott, Kyle Walker or Gabriel Martinelli, or anything below is for you “doesn’t have pace”. In reality it’s a spectrum and whereas Jorgi has always been on the low end of that spectrum throughout his career, all the other players we’ve mentioned were comfortably above the middle of this spectrum at their peaks.
No the words you are putting into my mouth are not what I believe. I’m just pointing out that modric was not quick, relative to professional football players and that your assertion about quick players lasting longer in their career is, in my opinion, incorrect. I’m not even touching the part where you say ‘athletic’ players last longer as that seems too obvious to even merit mention.
Guess we’ll have to agree to disagree then, given this discussion has lasted very long despite not being very quick at all 🙂
So, that’s one midfield position sorted (almost). There seems to.be lot of chatter that we are interested in Sociedad ‘s Zubimendi. Charlie Patino seems to be doing well on loan. Keen to know whether he could be added as Elneny replacement.
Charlie has barely started a game in months for Swansea, it’s not going well for him at all
In general I’m not in favor of handing first team roles to young players who will be on the fringes of selection, unless they really add something unique to the squad. They end up not playing, they don’t really develop and what’s more you never get a real sense of whether they will make it. Their value sinks, and you can’t even sell them because clubs don’t know what they’re getting. They need to go out on loan someplace they can play consistently, or stay and play with the youth teams. You can always call them up from there if… Read more »
Probably off the pace for what we need now. A Prem loan would be interesting if there any takers. Not sure where his contract stands atm.
I feel like getting down voted… Do folks think Rashford would fit in this team?
He doesn’t work hard enough defensively 🤷🏼
and he’s a lil biatch
Learn from the Fat one, he is invariably the clear winner on downvotes.
How dare you?! Sometimes I actually get a few up votes.
See?
True that, I can bear witness to that because I actually gave him an upvote the other day…to my own surprise 😅😂
From a quality standpoint, absolutely. He’s the closest thing England has to Mbappe and he’s in a terribly dysfunctional situation, so obviously not performing to anywhere near his peak capability. Arsenal would give him a superb platform. From an intangibles standpoint though, I don’t think it’s a good fit. He doesn’t seem like an Arteta player. Not a scrapper, not switched on out of possession, not sure about his commitment from game to game. Maybe that changes in a better environment but he also has too much history with a hated rival to be embraced by most of the fans… Read more »
In Arteta (& Edu et al) I trust. No doubt Rashford has some tallent. He’s done us enough damage over the years. As you say, there is a tangible intangibles deficit. But if the recruitment guys sit down with him, or call him, or do whatever they do and decide that a change would do him good then I’ll be happy enough to support him. I was a little sceptical about Havertz and that’s working pretty well right now.
This is actually an interesting conversation. At the moment Rashford is stinking the place out at Old Trafford but I’m sure that there’s a much better player in there. A better coach than Ten Hag could get significantly more out of Rashford – Arteta could be that coach. The big problem is wages. Rashford is apparently on more that 300k a week at United. He is not even worth half that amount at the moment; that’s why he’ll probably go out on loan somewhere this summer with United still paying some of his wages. At Arsenal the the most urgent… Read more »
Espanyol!!! They couldn’t afford 20% of his wages. Arsenal’s most urgent need is someone who can score goals from a half chance, tear the top off of a high line, create his own shot and score in a variety of ways. Rashford does all of that, a bit like Aubameyang. He could absolutely play CF against a team that plays a high line in a transitional game (like Bayern or periods of Chelsea, Spurs), he can play as an outlet on either wing, or as a weak side poacher against a deep block, or as a runner behind a mid… Read more »
Aside from the wages, he also doesn’t feel defend. That doesn’t fit with our style of play; every outfield player is a defender. He’s a great fella and I agree, there is untapped potential there, but it seems very unlikely.
Arsenal are also now a serious football club, not a rehabilitation centre for waifs and strays. The last thing this team needs is a supposed “top talent” that needs indulging
I said in the first part of this season that he’s the only good player at Utd. It was after the goal he scored against us I think. But it seems he went full mutiny mode for a while. And I think the seasons he’s had has been bad enough that we shouldn’t entertain it. He’s gotten a raw deal in a lot of ways but he’s also let his circumstance affect the effort he puts into games. That alone means he’s a bad fit for our team of selfless, hard working players. If he doesn’t start 3 games in… Read more »
He’s not the only good player at Man U though.
I believe there’s a vacancy in the club cafeteria
Yes; as an opponent of the team.
I suppose that now we’ve got shot of the disruptive influences in the dressing room, there is a vacancy there.
I really don’t think he’d be disruptive. Trosard fell out with di Zerbi but Arteta was confident he’d fit us. Its just Ten Hag is a weird personalityless automaton who you’d have to have the patience of a saint to retain respect for.
I have no issues with his character. He’s actually one of the few good men in footie. Work rate out of possession and wages are why it’s a non starter.
ETH is a weird one. Brought in to steer Man U in the right direction after a decade of decay and look at the team, the same dross are still there. He then goes all guns blazing on Jadon Sancho – arguably one of the biggest English talents who proved himself at Dortmund – and hounds him back there. Meanwhile Fernandes remains safe while sulking his way through game after game. McTominay still there. Slab Head keeps being bad in defence. And so forth…
Are his hands tied like his predecessors or is he just out of his depth?
Yes.
Man Utd are a club’s that drowning, it’s time to put our foot on their head not offering our hand and buying their dross!
It’s certainly not one to be dismissed out of hand but probably doesn’t go much further than that. His wages are ridiculous and matching them would make him the most highly paid player in our squad by some way. He’s basically untransferrable apart from to the Middle East or Paris.
My guess is that he sees his future as a coach in Italy–but maybe by starting as an Arteta assistant. Very happy to have him stay as a player.
Central midfield is an area of need for this squad. The consistent lack of availability for a key player in that position is untenable. This helps consolidate some measure of stability in that area, but we can’t have just him and Rice for most of a season again. Reinforcements are required whether TP stays or goes. From a strictly on pitch value perspective, he is the top metronome and top mid block assassin in the squad. Those are valuable qualities that aren’t easy to replace. He’s also one of Arteta’s top on pitch liutenants with Odegaard. That’s why he starts… Read more »
Who is the closest fit to TP’s style but young and fit? Genuine question. We thought it was Lokonga but wasn’t……Frankie de Jong?
Second question – could Nwaneri be one of our 4/5 front line midfielders next year? I feel he would get given a run at Barca or Liverpool if they had him?
Good question, I’ve been trying to think of TP analogues for some time. You’re looking for top pass volume with accuracy, top ball progression with the pass or on the carry, ability run past defenders with the ball, and robust physicality. That’s a rare blend. Frenkie de Jong is not as elite physically but much more secure on the ball, is an elite ball progressor who also creates in the final third. He’s the dream. Camavinga, Zaire-Emery, Kimmich also fantastic(al) though not strictly like for like. Caicedo can do most of what TP does and that’s why we were after… Read more »
I want to see Nwaneri get a full season under his belt as a first team regular on loan, and then we’ll see. No need to rush with Smith-Rowe and Vieira on the books.
Baleba
Doesn’t have the passing ability required, not yet
Not to baleba the point, but I agree with your assessment.
Maybe after 20 years he can replace Arteta.
I can see him being in Arteta’s inner circle of coaches after he hangs it up, and then he’ll branch out from there. He could have a massive career in coaching.
Would definitely keep jorg and Partey for at least another season. Would still add another “8”. release elneny and promote Skelly.
Well earned. I’d say he’s going to make a great coach, so potentially a great long term investment.
I’d keep Partey instead and sign a younger replacement for Jorginho to alternate with Partey.
I know it’s the injuries for Partey, but I don’t think next season would be as diabolical as this season has been for him.
Ramsdale, Nketiah, Nelson, Tierney and ESR would bring in sizeable funds to further upgrade the team.
Great news, super leader . I do wonder is keeping Parety a 20 million gamble worth taking . Most likely we won’t be as lucky to get as many games out of Rice and Martin Ode next year . Buying Zubamendi is a no brainer but may need time to adopt . You offset his purchase with that of Partey and his wages but same time invest to succeed in both competitions so could you buy Zuba ans keep partey ? Up top I think Kai has locked in the 9 , maybe Kolo Muaini is available from PSG ,… Read more »
sign da ting jorgi
Midfield Is definitely the area of the pitch we need to be looking at this summer and would personally like us going for someone like Paqueta to fill that left 8 slot. First it’ll get Rice back into his best position as a 6, secondly it could help us get the best out of Martinelli, he’ll take some of the creative burden off Odegaard. He also has the physical attributes we need as a team. For me when you couple his premier league experience with the above he’s the outstanding candidate. An other player who’s name i haven’t seen mentioned… Read more »
Both good players that would improve the squad, but also very likely that their clubs would demand exorbitant fees for them. Neither in my opinion is of the caliber of Declan Rice for example, such that the value is worth pushing out the proverbial boat. I think we need to be targeting a tier even higher than those two if we’re going to be paying premium money (de Jong, Leao, Osimhen, etc.). Short of that if we are looking for depth then I would look to get value from a veteran on a shorter contract. I mentioned Ross Barkley above… Read more »
I can’t see the club paying premium money on the 3 players you’ve listed (de Jong, Leao, Osimhen) because I think the club has moved to a place where they now believe the premium is proven Premier League quality and experience. If you look at our recent recruitment, the majority of the signings and especially the big money ones, have been from other Premier League clubs. Rice, Havertz, Jorginho, Trossard, White, Raya, Gabriel Jesus, Zinchenko all domestic with the cheaper, supplementary players coming from abroad, Timber, Kiwior, Vieira, Tomi. I’ll be very surprised if we see the club throwing big… Read more »