Our team completed the third signing of the January transfer window on deadline day when Jorginho moved from West London to North London.
Having experienced international flaunting and countless major collective and individual honors, the 31-year-old has been on a journey since childhood – he has proven himself every time;
Beginning in Brazil
Jorginho – whose full name is Jorge Luiz Frello Filho – was born on December 20, 1991 in Imbituba, a coastal town in Santa Catarina, one of Brazil’s southern states.
Hailing from a football-crazy family, Jorginho had adopted dreams of one day playing in the game and honed his skills with his mother, who in his own words is a midfielder, “who trains me”. After impressing the football camp, he took the first step to realize his goal, when he signed with Hellas Verona in the year 15.
From Imbituba to Italy
Making his way across the Atlantic Ocean, he initially lived with a large number of Jorginho’s teammates. He progressed through the youth ranks and trained with Verona’s first team, still only 17, before making his senior loan debut at Serie C2 side Sambonifacese in 2010/11.
Playing in a central central-midfield position, Jorginho impressed and scored the first goal of his career in capturing Casale. He made 31 league appearances over the course of the campaign, helping Sambonifacesi to finish 12th – and encouraging displays saw Verona integrate him into the senior squad.
He made his club debut in early September 2011, as a late substitute in a 1-0 win over Sassuolo. While his first team opportunities were initially irregular, Jorginho eventually broke into the starting XI and played in 26 consecutive Serie B matches as Verona secured a place in the playoffs. They lost in the semi-final to Varese, but rallied and secured promotion to Serie A the following season, with Jorginho featuring in 41 of 42 league matches.
Verona marked their return to the top flight brilliantly – with a 2-1 home win over AC Milan. The team was catching the eye – Jorginho and so it was. He scored seven times in the first half of the season, five of them from the penalty spot, with performances from Italy. In January 2014, his season in Verona began.
A new beginning in Naples
Jorginho was signed for Napoli in a co-ownership deal in January 2014 and quickly became an important part of the team. After helping the Gli Azzurri to finish third in Serie A, he finished the first half of the season in style, playing the full 90 minutes of the 3-1 Italian Cup final win over Fiorentina.
Another trophy followed at the end of the calendar year, courtesy of a penalty kick victory against Juventus in the Italian Super Cup. Jorginho continued to be an ever-present at Napoli – and the appointment of Maurizio Sarri as manager in June 2015 proved vital to his future fortunes.
Italy international
Under the guidance of the new boss, Napoli finished the 2015/16 season as runners-up in Serie A, with Jorginho flourishing. His displays caught the eye of Antonio Conte, who was then 24 years old with Italy’s first senior cap.
Jorginho, who was eligible to play for Italy through his paternal great-grandfather, made his international debut in a 1-1 draw against Spain in March 2016. A second appearance for the Azzurri followed two months later, winning a friendly against Scotland.
Jorginho continued to star under Sarri and was a key component of a Napoli side that finished third in 2017 and second the season after. Both got suitors from all over Europe – and were due to move to England in the summer of 2018.
Chelsea’s call
Jorginho was unveiled as a Chelsea player on the same day Sarri became their new head coach. He marked his Premier League debut by scoring against Huddersfield Town and immediately established himself as an ever-present in midfield.
He helped Chelsea to the final of the EFL Cup, scoring in the semi-final to win against Tottenham Hotspur and, although they lost the final against Manchester City, Jorginho ended the season with the trophy after Sarri’s side won the Europa League. place in the competition for that season’s squad.
Chelsea came close to winning more silverware the following season, but they denied him an FA Cup winners’ medal, even though he started the final at Wembley.
A golden year
Having suffered more extreme pain when the runners-up finished in the League Cup, 2021 would finally prove to be an unstoppable future for Jorginho – for all the right reasons.
An almost ever-present in the Champions League, he contributed significantly to Chelsea beating Atletico Madrid, Porto and Real Madrid en route to an all-Premier League final against Manchester City. A tight match, in which Jorginho impressed again, was finally settled by Kai Havertz’s goal in the 42nd minute.
Another medal winner soon followed. Now an indispensable member of Italy’s squad, Jorginho started every match as Roberto Mancini’s side won Euro 2020 – scoring the decisive penalty in the semi-final win against Spain.
A series of personal accolades followed. Already named in the Champions League Squad of the Season, Jorginho was also included in the European Championship Team of the tournament and was named UEFA Men’s Player of the Year 2020/21.
Jorginho picked up another trophy in his first game back at Chelsea following the Euros – the UEFA Super Cup, in which he scored a penalty – and finished 2021 third in the Ballon d’Or rankings and as FIFA Club World Cup winner.
An eye for purpose
With just the penalty resting, Jorginho would score nine times in all competitions in 2021/22 – the most prolific campaign of his career. All of them from that point have three goals this term.
He finished last season with two medal runners-up – Chelsea reaching both the League Cup and FA Cup finals but losing both against Liverpool.
To learn more about our new arrival, here are 20 things you probably didn’t know about it
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