Chelsea midfielder Jorginho is close to completing a deadline day move to Arsenal. Frustrated by Brighton & Hove Albion's reluctance to sell Moises Caicedo, the Gunners quickly turned their attention to the Italian in what is somewhat of a surprise move.
football.london understands Arsenal will pay £10million up front for the 31-year-old with a further £2million in add-ons which could hinge on conditions such as whether or not Arsenal win the Premier League. The 31-year-old will join on an initial 18-month contract with the option to extend by a further year.
Jorginho has just six months remaining on his Chelsea contract and it's believed Todd Boehly was always willing to let the midfielder leave Stamford Bridge at the right price. But not many expected Edu and Mikel Arteta to go in for the former Napoli man.
READ MORE: Premier League confirm Arsenal to name Jorginho in squad after £12m transfer is completed
The move has been greeted with mixed response from the Gunners fanbase. On one hand Arsenal are signing a serial winner with undoubted quality, but he is 31 years old and isn't perhaps seen as a typical Arteta signing.
With that in mind, football.london's Arsenal writers Kaya Kaynak and Tom Canton, as well as trends writer Aaron Catterson-Reid, have given their thoughts on the signing.
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Kaya Kaynak - Chief Arsenal correspondent
I'll have to admit when football.london initially reported the Jorginho links yesterday I was not over the moon. Moises Caicedo had felt like a young and exciting name so to pivot to someone in his 30s who hasn't been a consistent starter recently for a poor Chelsea side felt like an odd one.
For me it was all about the length of the contract though. If Arsenal had brought him in on a long-term deal in a similar manner to Willian then I think eyebrows would have had to be raised. As we've reported, it's only an 18 month deal for Jorginho with an option for a further year.
It's far from ideal, but then doing business in the January transfer window is tricky. Jorginho is a better player than Mohamed Elneny in my opinion so that means Arsenal have met Mikel Arteta's request to improve the squad. He won't be a regular starter, but in terms of an experienced voice in the changing room to fill in while Arsenal's young squad push for a first Premier League title in nearly 20 years, it makes sense. Just.
Tom Canton - Arsenal Writer
Needs must. Arsenal needed to add a midfielder to provide both a better option closer to the level of Thomas Partey and a replacement for the injured Mohamed Elneny and there is little debate Jorginho will provide that.
Where the debate exists is whether he was the best option in this window and for the future. The length of the Italian’s contract with the club certainly leaves Arsenal in a position of control and not locked into a problem deal like they have been with players in the past.
Elneny and Albert Sambi Lokonga are likely to move on in the summer and there will be space to recruit. Remember Arsenal needed a midfielder prior to the Egyptian’s injury and should he and Lokonga leave there is clearly space for a couple of additions.
But back to Jorginho, this is a player putting in numbers of an elite Premier League level. How long he can keep them up for is a different discussion but six months of that return and suddenly the Gunners might be Premier League champions and any talk of who should have been signed goes out the window.
Aaron Catterson-Reid - Trends Writer
If you asked Arsenal fans a month ago, if they would be happy signing Jorginho, 90% of them would have said no. The Italian international is certainly not a bad player - far from it - and his ability to progress the ball vertically combined with his invaluable experience can add a lot to the Gunners in the short term.
However, that is exactly what this feels like, a stop-gap move that goes against a lot of what Edu and Mikel Arteta have preached in the last two years. Jorginho's physical attributes are also a worry.
Only two Premier League players have been dribbled past more often than the 31-year-old this season, a worrying statistic when you consider that he may have to play considerable game time as Arsenal's No.6 if the injury-prone Thomas Partey suffers from any additional fitness issues during the remainder of the season.
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