As one door opens, another one closes. As the new wave of Chelsea players swarms Cobham, it’s time to say goodbye to Jorginho.
As Agatha Christie would say: and then there was one—well, sort of. If we remove Christian Pulisic from Maurizio Sarri’s transfer portfolio—seeing as he arrived after the Italian had departed—and assume Kepa Arrizabalaga’s time in west London is up, Jorginho is the only remaining individual from the financier’s bankroll.
In case you were wondering, Rob Green and Gonzalo Higuain round up the five-man list. Unless you count Mateo Kovacic’s initial loan spell, which we’re not because we’re trying to make a point here. Why give Sarri the benefit of the doubt? He was never given his due at Stamford Bridge, so let’s not start now. So, then there was one.
A Brazilian-born Italian international with a one-name moniker; the last true remnant of that short-lived, ill-fated Neopolitan experiment. He was good and sometimes even great for a few games, and then he was found out. Then he evolved, then he stuttered and now he’s ready to leave—at least by my estimations.
Perhaps that needs expanding on; and yet, so many words have been cast to the internet’s trash heap expounding on the relative talents of this talismanic-ally divisive midfielder. Some—usually with a bearded Brazilian grin for their Twitter avatar—have defended him with wild consistency, even when the man himself hasn’t done so on the pitch. Others have whined about his faults to no end. To be fair, he does have faults. Starting with that sigh-inducing running style and cry-inducing pace that comes with it; ending somewhere near the 22-yard box after he’s been left in the dust having failed to bring the man down when he could’ve done. Oh, and he can’t shoot.
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Still, Jorginho’s a classy passer. He showed right up until the end of the season that he could bring a game under his control—at his tempo—with relative ease. Thing is, those games are usually against clubs like Crystal Palace. That’s maybe the biggest reason for Jorginho’s underwhelming reputation. He’s never quite done it in the big games. Yes, there’s been big games where he’s played a wondrous pass, split a defense with one of those idiosyncratic dinks over the top, but they’d usually come alongside a damning defensive error or a lapse in concentration. Put simply, he could never quite put it all together.
Even if you disagree with that prognosis vehemently, there’s no arguing he’s not an excellent fit for this Chelsea side. From the little we know of Lampard’s nascent managerial style, we can confidently state Jorginho doesn’t fit the midfield bill. He wants them to be relentless terriers, not relenting dachshunds—Jorginho’s easy on the eye, but largely immobile.
So, love, like or loath him: he has to go, but where? While there was plenty of pretty unsavory celebrating when the news of Sarri’s sacking at Juventus came through, there were also more than a few selfishly creased brows. The question then became where could Chelsea ditch the dachshund now? There’s been whispers of Roma—rising like a wolf from its burrow, Pedro Rodriguez already between its teeth—answering the Blues’ moon-hued prayers, but little else. Still, given both his style of play and enduring reputation, there seems little doubt that Italy would be the regista’s likeliest destination.
Honestly, I wish him well. He’s a talented player and he’ll probably remain one for a while. Hell, I wouldn’t be surprised if—in a year’s time—he’s dashing England’s Euro 2021 hopes Pirlo-style with a hop-skip-hesi-panenka penalty.
Regardless, the fact remains that in this climate this summer, with all the incoming traffic at the Bridge, some space needs to be cleared inside the dressing room. That means outgoings and preferably pricey ones too. With Kai Havertz looking set to join Ruben Loftus-Cheek, N’Golo Kante, Billy Gilmour, Mason Mount and Kovacic in the fight for midfield minutes, sacrifices must be made. Jorginho represents the best contrast of value in the market and value for the team.
P.S. Yes, you can read into Ross Barkley’s omission from that list—by all means.