Juventus needs another high-quality midfielder this summer, but Jorginho may be too ambitious of a target.
Former Napoli center midfielder Jorginho is known around Europe as one of the best holding midfielders in the game, even if he often goes underappreciated. Maurizio Sarri and Jorginho had a great deal of success together in Serie A, and it seems like Sarri wants to bring him back to Juventus.
The rumors linking Jorginho to Juve aren’t new. Jorginho is a realistic transfer target in the sense that he’s no longer seen as an important player in the squad by Frank Lampard. Although Jorginho disappointed at Chelsea under Maurizio Sarri, he’s actually played quite well for them in 2019-2020, bringing class and composure to a young and hungry side.
Gazzetta dello Sport’s Carlo Laudisa reports that Jorginho is Maurizio Sarri’s dream target this summer, which isn’t a surprise. But moreso than their past history together and Jorginho’s familiarity as a clear fit for #SarriBall, Jorginho’s skill-set is indeed exactly what Juve needs.
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Juve wisely swapped Miralem Pjanic for the younger (and better) Arthur Melo, but while both men are center midfielders, they don’t actually play the same position.
The Bianconeri have earmarked Rodrigo Bentancur as their future regista to replace Pjanic’s role, but recent performances show that this isn’t the gig for Bentancur.
Meanwhile, Jorginho is perfect. He keeps play ticking like nobody else and sees the game as a leader. His leadership has been great to see at Chelsea, especially when he points out where young players should be positioned. In that sense, he’d bring an X-Factor Juventus need.
The problem is cost. Chelsea paid 40 million euros to bring in Jorginho, and while they don’t have much use for him under Lampard, it’s hard to not make a profit off such a talented player.
Even in this market, Chelsea, per Gazzetta, won’t want to give Juve a discount price.
It’s going to be difficult for the Bianconeri to make this work, because they don’t seem to have anyone that would interest Chelsea in a swap deal. The Blues are eyeing another attacking talent in Kai Havertz, but their true needs lie in defense and at the goalkeeper position. Juve don’t have anyone expendable to trade there, and they need swaps in order to add marquee players.
Jorginho may end up being Sarri’s wish that got away this summer, but the Bianconeri need to do their best to make this deal happen for their manager.