Chelsea defender Thiago Silva spoke of his shock that Jorginho was allowed to leave for Arsenal during the January transfer window in a deal that could low-key be the worst of the Todd Boehly era at Stamford Bridge.
The Blues have been criticised for their big spending on young players over the course of the last 18 months, but while few of these stars have hit the ground running, there is at least an opportunity for them to turn their Chelsea careers around.
It is often cited that there is a lack of leadership, though, around Stamford Bridge, and offloading the experienced Jorginho to Arsenal in a surprise January deal worth just €11.3 million deprived the Blues of that valuable quality.
The 31-year-old had spent more than four years at Chelsea, playing over 200 matches for the club before being transferred across London for a fee that was significantly below his Expected Transfer Value (xTV) of €18m.
Although a relatively unspectacular player in terms of what he did in midfield, Thiago Silva explained in an interview with ESPN Brasil that Jorginho brought a good deal more to the Blues than might have been apparent and admits he was shocked the transfer was completed.
“It was for a direct rival, but these are football things, it happens. He wanted to stay in England because he has family here. There are things that we have no control over, but we have to understand the player’s side of things,” the centre-back explained.
“I know we have a lot of work ahead of us, especially as we have lost one of our great leaders in the dressing room. Jorginho is a guy who spoke a lot and this hole will remain, but we have to move on. We didn’t expect him to leave, but it has happened. We have to make up for his absence in the best possible way.”
Jorginho’s influence being felt at Arsenal
And though Jorginho has struggled to break into the Arsenal team, marquee summer signing Declan Rice has underlined his importance to the club.
“The one who surprised me so much, not surprised because I knew he was such a good player anyway. Playing with him every day in training and seeing how he is because he’s not the biggest is Jorginho,” he said.
“His brain, the way it works as a holding midfielder, I’ve just been trying to pick up little things off of him. He’s always in position, he always knows when to pass, always creates time for himself, he’s an outstanding trainer.”
This is just why Arteta signed a player who is now pushing into the twilight of his career.
FootballTransfers exclusively revealed in September that Jorginho is happy with his role at the club but, perhaps more crucially, that Arteta sees the midfielder as integral to the club’s next stage of development.
His value away from the field is seen as precious for the Gunners while he is seen as a steady hand to come into the team as the fixtures pile up.
In many ways, Jorginho sums up the differing approach of the two London clubs in the transfer market: Chelsea have gone all in on youth, whereas Arsenal have opted for a more balanced strategy.
So far it is the Gunners who are coming out on top, with the smart addition of Jorginho one of the reasons. Chelsea could really use an old head like him.
(Football Transfer)
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