How Jorginho became Mikel Arteta’s brainy sidekick: The Arsenal midfielder is the key to Gunners’ title ambitions this season both on and off pitch

• Arteta has hailed Jorginho as one of the most intelligent players he’s ever seen
• Another main area of improvement for Arsenal is Declan Rice, bought for £105m
• Do Man United have what it takes to exploit Liverpool’s defensive vulnerability? It’s All Kicking Off 

For much of the game against Aston Villa, with suspended manager Mikel Arteta sat high in the stands, Jorginho paced the touchline, waving his arms and barking instructions at the Arsenal players on the pitch.

At one point, goalkeeper David Raya raced to the dugout for tactical instruction. He received it not from the coaching staff or one of the analysts but from the substitute midfielder.

‘I remember it clearly,’ says Jorginho, sitting on the edge of the indoor pitch at Arsenal’s training ground. ‘There was a ball that came out and he tried to play it to the right side and I told him to play on the left because that’s what we’d trained. I called him over, but we could not hear each other properly, so then he came over to have this chat.’

Such is the influence of Jorginho on this Arsenal team and the trust placed in him by Arteta. There’s a reason why his Italy team-mates call him ‘Il Professore’ and why Arteta hails him one of the most intelligent players he’s ever managed.

Jorginho is Arteta’s coach on the pitch. And, so it seems, his coach when he’s off it, too.

Mikel Arteta has quickly shown how much he appreciates Jorginho’s tactical input in games

The Brazilian midfielder has been hailed as one of the most intelligent players in the game

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‘It’s something that comes naturally to me, when Mikel is there or when he’s not there – even more when he’s not there,’ says Jorginho.

‘I was just trying to support the boys and trying to help them with advice that I could see from outside the pitch to make them better.’

Jorginho knows he’s not the quickest, he knows he’s not the strongest. He’s heard those criticisms enough during his career. He also knows that’s not what’s made him a winner. It’s what’s between his ears that sets him apart.

‘I think that’s one of my biggest strengths – my brain,’ says Jorginho. ‘All I’ve learned from the past and over the years. All I try to do is pass it to the boys and try and help them, grow them, to understand better the game.’

Arteta knows that too.

‘When he’s on the bench, he’s like another coach,’ said Arteta. ‘Every time I look behind he is there and it is great that he is living the game. If he wants to [be a manager], he has every quality to do so. He’s one of the most intelligent players that I have coached. The detail he can go into to understand what is happening live, in the game, how to correct it, and how he can attract the attention of his teammates to listen to him and do what he is telling them to do, it’s really impressive.

‘He’s funny, too, but at the same time he’s someone who really takes care of people, he makes people better. As a role model you want to look at somebody with his career and the way he acts every single day, look at him, see how he wakes up in the morning. He understands his role in a great way and whatever you ask him to do he will do it at his best and that’s something rare.’

In Arteta’s absence, Jorginho is quickly proving to be a major asset for Arteta and his side

It’s clear why Arteta was so keen to bring him in. His move from Chelsea on deadline day in January came out of nowhere. ‘I didn’t see that coming,’ he says. ‘I think it happened in less than 48 hours. I saw the opportunity of working in a team that had an amazing project, of growing a team, to try and achieve and feeling that they wanted me to give this help to improve the team. I am glad they knew I would always put the team first. The project convinced me straight away to come. I did not have to think too much.’

He also brings the mentality of a winner. He’s learned over the years how to win big things.

‘Yeah, just a few,’ grins the Arsenal midfielder.

In 2021, Jorginho enjoyed the year of his life. He won the Champions League with Chelsea, the Euros with Italy, he won the UEFA men’s player of the year, came third behind Lionel Messi and Robert Lewandowski in the Ballon d’Or and won the Club World Cup – all in the space of a few months.

‘That was a bit insane for me – I did not see that coming either!’ says Jorginho. ‘Everything happened so quickly. I did not have time to stop and realise what was happening because in life, and especially in football, everything happens so fast. Those titles, they came in the same year — it was just too much. It was a lot in a row.

‘I didn’t have the time to stop myself and analyse and realise. It did not change me. I don’t think I am going to change at this age. You just look back and see all the work you put in, it was worth it. That was an example for myself that I can share with who I can. Anything is possible and I can share that with team-mates, friends, my kids, with anyone I am around. I don’t think that should change anyone. It should just make you proud of the person you are and how much you worked hard for it.’

Whether he continues to play or come off the bench, Jorginho will be key for Arsenal’s season

Jorginho is celebrating off the field, too, having just got engaged to his girlfriend Catherine Harding. He popped the question surrounded by red roses and candles beneath a neon sign that read ‘Will you marry me?’ and serenaded by a violinist.

On the pitch, meanwhile, Jorginho’s not always been the master tactician. ‘Honestly, no,’ he says. The 31-year was born in Brazil, with an Italian great-grandfather, before moving to Italy to start his young career at Verona, where he lived in a monastery, before moving to Napoli. He wasn’t the Professor until he moved to Italy.

‘In Brazil, back in the day, it was more technical stuff,’ adds Jorginho. ‘Not much tactical. And then coming to Italy and learning the tactical stuff, how important it is, and how it can have such a huge impact on the game… that was the moment I started seeing the difference. How much you can improve, how many games it can make you win tactically.’

IT’S ALL KICKING OFF! 

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Jorginho, and Arteta, are seeing how much Arsenal can improve. It was a 3-0 home defeat to Brighton in May last season that all-but ended their title dreams but here they are, again, fighting at the top. They face Brighton again on Sunday.

‘More than a change, it’s an evolution,’ is how Arteta put it.

One of the main differences is Declan Rice, the new £105million man in midfield. ‘He is a big player,’ says Jorginho. ‘Everyone can see that. His energy, his physicality, he has a big impact on that. He is a humble guy and he has so much to learn, improve and be a big player in world football.

Can he be the difference between falling short and winning the lot? ‘He can be a big part of it.’

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