Pundit Craig Burley has now suggested that Arsenal midfielder Jorginho is becoming a problem for Italy following his latest performance.
Burley was discussing Italy’s 0-0 draw with Ukraine on the ESPN FC podcast and thought Jorginho’s levels were dropping.
The pundit listed some replacements before sharing his belief that 31-year-old Jorginho is now on his last legs.
Burley said: “Obviously Jorginho is kind of on his last legs and there are other people that can come in and play in that position.”
Of course, Jorginho’s qualities have always been centric to his playmaking.
The Italian is often criticised for his lack of physicality at Arsenal, but that overlooks the strongest part of his game.
Mikel Arteta clearly still thinks that Jorginho has the quality and fitness levels to dictate games in the Premier League.
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And that couldn’t be better demonstrated by his willingness to move one of the world’s best defensive midfielders, Declan Rice, to the number eight position.
So although some are now doubting Jorginho for Italy and Arsenal, he does still have the backing of some of the best brains in football.
Burley thought Arsenal’s Jorginho looked below the pace for Italy
Although there was scepticism at first, Jorginho has transpired to be a smart signing for £12m from Chelsea.
The midfielder has been reliable on the pitch, and seems to be playing an even bigger role off of it.
However, there’s still no agreement in place for the Italian to stay at Arsenal beyond the current season.
Arsenal do have an option to extend Jorginho’s deal for another year, however his agent has now claimed that discussions have reached a stalemate.
And whilst Jorginho is still proving reliable for Italy and Arsenal, he is a player that Arteta will surely want to keep around.
Thomas Partey is often linked with an exit, someone Arsenal were willing to sell last summer.
And Mohamed Elneny also appears likely to move on once his contract expires.
Jorginho might not be a long-term solution for Arsenal, but he’s certainly useful for the here and now.