Arsenal, Manchester United and Manchester City are reportedly all interested in and will pursue Napoli midfielder Jorginho in the summer.
According to The Sun, Napoli midfielder Jorginho is on the radar of a host of Premier League clubs, who are all chasing the player’s signature. The likes of Arsenal, Manchester United and Manchester City are reportedly set to battle each other for the Italian international in the summer transfer window.
All three clubs have scouted the player out on multiple occasions this season so far and his agent Joao Santos has sent rather mixed signals to his suitors. On one hand, he states that Jorginho is available and ready to extend his Napoli contract and on the other, he has fueled speculation by stating that the player will excel in the Premier League.
“It’s normal for top European clubs to keep players of this type on their radars.”
“We’re waiting for May. We hope Napoli can win the league. Then if Napoli wants to renew the contract, we can talk about it. I don’t know if De Laurentiis will call me at the end of the season to extend his contract. I suppose that [he will]. We are available to deal with [the club]. He has become Neapolitan and is in a family. He is a top level player.”
“I follow the Premier League. I’m sure Jorginho has the characteristics to play there. He runs more than 13km every game and he has a great technique. I don’t have a figure in my mind, the price is set by the president.”
Arsenal’s need for a midfield dictator is paramount, especially considering the fact that both Jack Wilshere and Aaron Ramsey have been linked with a summer exit. The entire Arsenal squad is set to undergo a huge rebuild in the summer and the arrival of a midfield general like Jorginho would help a great deal.
Manchester United, on the other hand, are looking for the third and perhaps the final piece of the midfield jigsaw puzzle featuring Nemanja Matic and Paul Pogba. Jorginho shares a great deal of attributes with United veteran Michael Carrick and could become his replacement for the long-term, considering he is 26 and can still offer at least half a decade of top-quality football.
Manchester City do have a stacked midfield. But, Fernandinho’s age warrants a replacement and while City are looking at Fred as the man to replace his compatriot, Jorginho could be a man that is better suited to Guardiola’s style and is thus, a viable target for the manager, considering that David Silva too, is on the wrong side of 30.
The report entails that Jorginho would cost somewhere around £60 million – a figure that is not too dastardly, given the current condition of the market. It would be interesting to see which of Arsenal, Manchester United and Manchester City manage to get an upper hand in Jorginho’s pursuit or whether Liverpool or some other suitor snatches the Italian international away from the aforementioned trio.
