Chelsea have been busy in the last week.

After sacking former manager Antonio Conte, The Blues have appointed fellow Italian Maurizio Sarri as his replacement. Sarri then spent little time before recruiting midfielder Jorginho from former side Napoli.

The purchase of the Italian international middle-man is significant because it’s seen the London side beat Premier League champions Manchester City to his signature.

While Pep Guardiola and the City moneymen haggled over the midfielder’s price tag, Chelsea were able to agree a £5om fee to bring in the talented star.

The twenty-six year old was seen as one of City’s main transfer targets this summer and now Chelsea have his services for next season. It’s a signal of intent from Sarri and his new side.

Jorginho will be seen as the man that can start Chelsea attacks from deeper positions, much like Cesc Fabregas has done in the recent past.

The Brazilian born man is usually used in the defensive midfield area of the field but like former Italian international Andrea Pirlo he’s more comfortable with the ball at his feet and being deployed as a deep-laying midfielder.

In Serie A last term, the eight time capped player completed 89% of his passes. According to OptaJoe, Jorginho completed 2860 passes in his thirty-three games in the Italian top flight and that was more than anyone else in Europe’s top five leagues.

Through his vision and passing ability, the midfielder can dictate the game’s tempo and imposing his style on the game.

As the Partenopei succeed in becoming challengers in Serie A, twenty-five year old Jorginho has been one of their main stars. Everything seems to go through him as he gains the most touches of the ball and keeps the game ticking over with his high volume of passes.

Obviously having previously worked with Sarri at Napoli will be advantageous for the club as the manager will know exactly where to play Jorginho and how to get the best out of him.

If Chelsea are to challenge for the Premier League title next season, then Jorginho could be vital. But there’s another issue that could dictate the success or lack of success for The Blues in the next campaign and that’s the other transfer business that they do over the next few weeks.

The Stamford Bridge side have already been linked with other Serie A talent like Gonzalo Higuain, Alisson and Daniele Rugani.

But it could be the possible outgoings that stop a potential title bid.

Eden Hazard has been the club’s star player in recent years, yet his future seems to be up in the air with the Belgian forward recently saying:

“After six wonderful years at Chelsea, it might be time to discover something different. I can decide if I want to stay or go, but Chelsea will make the final decision — if they want to let me go. You know my preferred destination,”

That quote suggests that the maverick forward could be ready for a change and he’s hinting at a move to long time admirers Real Madrid, who are currently looking for a Cristiano Ronaldo replacement. If Chelsea were to lose Hazard then that could be disastrous for any title challenge.

You also have other influential current Chelsea players like N’Golo Kante, Thibaut Courtois and Willian that have been linked with moves away from the club.

As I’ve said already, Jorginho could be a stunning signing for Chelsea but he’ll be better if he’s playing alongside Kante in the engine room and has Hazard and Willian playing in front of him!

The next few weeks of the transfer window could determine what chance Maurizio Sarri and Jorginho have in making a real impact in the English top flight in the next year.

Posted on July 16th, 2018 by scott
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