Chelsea midfielder Jorginho is keen to sign a new deal with the club after his agent claimed there has been no contact from Italian giants Juventus.
Jorginho’s future remains up in the air at Stamford Bridge. He has one year remaining on his current deal and rumours continue to link him with a move. However his agent Joao Santos has again insisted his client wants to stay.
The midfielder has played a key role for Chelsea this season. He has made 29 Premier League appearances, 26 of them have been starts. He has also chipped in with six goals.
Such form has caught the eye of Juventus with reports claiming the Italians are pushing hard for a deal. The Italian publication Gazzetta dello Sport went big on this earlier in the week.
They went as far as suggesting that Juventus chief Federico Cherubini has been in London to discuss a deal. However Santos has reacted to these rumours and says that is not the case.
Santos cleared up the situation in an interview with 1 Station Radio. He insists Juve have not been in touch with him regards a deal. And also says Chelsea are in no position to discuss transfers just yet anyway.
Santos expects interest in Jorginho from clubs in Italy, but Juve have not made an approach.
“The Juventus officials didn’t call me, surely because they know that at Chelsea at the moment nothing can be done without a license for the transfer market,” Santos told the station.
“Obviously, a profile like Jorge’s would serve many teams, even in Italy. I repeat, we will see the Chelsea situation first, because his priority is the renewal with the Londoners. In any case, I repeat, to date no one has come from Italy to ask me.”
Until Chelsea can sort out contract situations and transfers, the rumours will rumble on. But Santos reiterates what the player’s preference is. And that is to stay at Stamford Bridge.
“He still has one year on his contract with the Blues, the priority is renewal,” Santos added. “At the moment, however, Chelsea cannot operate on the market for issues arising from the Abramovich sale, so we will meet with the club to discuss it.”
Chelsea faced with Jorginho dilemma
So it seems clear that Jorginho wants to stay, but Chelsea have a dilemma. The midfielder will turn 31 year at the end of the year and the club are reluctant to hand out a renewal.
Indeed some reports have claimed a new contract will not be on the table and they will look to cash in this summer. It will be their last chance to recoup some cash on the player.
Chelsea will also be confident of getting a good deal. As well as Juventus, there is also interest from Lazio and AC Milan.
Jorginho has made 125 Premier League appearances since arriving at the club. He has been a key player for Thomas Tuchel and would take some replacing. It is hard to say whether selling Jorginho is a good idea without knowing who would be brought in as the replacement.
If Declan Rice was to be signed for example there would be no complaints from the Chelsea fans.
