OFFICIAL: Jorginho Joins Arsenal From London Rivals Chelsea On Deadline Day..

 Arsenal have confirmed the signing of Jorginho from Chelsea on a £10m plus £2m add ons deal.

The Italian has put pen to paper on an 18-months contract, with an option of an additional year, and set to earn £120,000 per week salary. He would wear the No 20 shirt for the club.

Jorginho was into the final six months of his Chelsea contract, with the Blues trying to land a British record transfer for Benfica central midfielder Enzo Fernandez.

During his time at Chelsea, Jorginho won the Europa League, Champions League, Uefa Super Cup and Fifa Club World Cup and played in five domestic cup finals.

He also the heart of Italy’s midfield as they triumphed at the European Championships in 2021.

Arsenal on the other hand, had bid twice bid for Moises Caicedo in the final week of the January window but Brighton insisted that the midfielder was not for sale this month.

Jorginho who has made 143 Premier League appearances, joins the Gunners on deadline day to boost their options in midfield going into the second half of the season, as well as inject some experience into Mikel Arteta's young squad, as they push to win the Premier League title.

In addition to making nearly 500 club appearances during his career, he has been a regular in the Italy national team squad for more than five years, making 46 appearances and winning Euro 2020 with his country.

The 31-year-old midfielder, started his career in the youth academy at Italian club Verona where he spent four seasons in the first-team, making 96 appearances before moving to Serie A side Napoli. There he won the Coppa Italia and Supercoppa Italiana in 2014 and made 160 appearances during his four seasons with the club.

Jorginho further expressed his delight of moving to the North side of London; 

“I’m very excited for this new challenge, and I just can’t wait to be on the pitch to be honest! Everything has happened so fast. I was a bit surprised, but I took the opportunity of this amazing challenge.

“It’s an important shirt. It’s an amazing club, a big one, and I’m really excited and happy to be here.”

"All I can promise is that I’m going to give my all to represent this club”.

Sporting Director Edu said: “Jorginho is an established professional with a strong mentality who brings quality and experience into our squad.

"He is a player who fits our style of play, and he joins us at a very good moment where he can contribute in a key position to help maintain our momentum. We welcome Jorginho to Arsenal.”

Manager Mikel Arteta added: “Jorginho is a midfield player with intelligence, deep leadership skills and a huge amount of Premier League and international experience. Jorginho has won in his career, but he still has the hunger and huge willingness to contribute here.

"We are so pleased to sign Jorginho and welcome him and his family to the club.”