Arsenal transfer news: Rio Ferdinand accused Jorginho of not being able to run in 2019

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Arsenal officially wrapped up a deal to sign Jorginho from Chelsea on deadline day – a player who Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand accused of not being able to run back in 2019.

Mikel Arteta will be delighted that the club have managed to bring in a new midfielder due to a lack of quality from the bench behind Thomas Partey and Granit Xhaka.

The north Londoners were aiming to land Moises Caicedo from Brighton, but Sky Sports reports that the Seagulls knocked back two bids for the 21-year-old.

Jorginho is not exactly a bad player to fall back on – the Italian has enjoyed a decorated career after lifting the Champions League and European Championships in 2021.

The 31-year-old placed third in the Ballon D’or award after playing a key role for Italy and Chelsea that year. But just two-years before, Ferdinand clearly didn’t hold the player in high regard.

Ferdinand on Jorginho

Ferdinand was scathing in his assessment of Jorginho’s displays for Chelsea back in 2019.

The Red Devils legend claimed that he wasn’t contributing enough at either end of the pitch.

“Jorginho is someone who sets the tempo of the game. You get the ball to him through the middle third of the pitch, he’s very good,” he said.

“How many assists has he got this season? Around 2,000 passes, no assists. He can’t run. So, he doesn’t give you anything defensively, and he doesn’t give you anything at the other end of the pitch.” as quoted by Football.London.

In all fairness, Ferdinand did go on to praise the Italian star after he enjoyed a brilliant year in 2021, but stood by his original comments.

“But if he was honest at the time [2019], you go back and rewind and understand the system he was playing in, it didn’t suit him so all of his weak attributes were being exploited because there were big spaces around him,” he said.

“But in this system, it very much backs up what he does, it’s much more condensed, they’re much more of a unit, he’s actually got confidence to become an important member in this team.

“Hats off to him for his attitude withstanding that criticism, using it as inspiration to come through and do what he’s doing now. I won’t say I was wrong in what I said, at that time that was where he was.”

Arsenal fans will have bad memories about their club bringing in Chelsea players after David Luiz and Willian underperformed in north London.

But Jorginho seems like an astute addition from the Gunners as they aim to end their 20-year wait for a Premier League title. The Italian will add some know-how to a young Arsenal side, while he’s certainly an upgrade on both Albert Sami Lokonga and Mohamed Elneny.

The only concern is that if Partey picks up an injury, Jorginho is not exactly the type of player who is capable of playing a similar role to the Ghanaian.