Jorginho doesn’t know anything either about Juventus, Chelsea, or why he isn’t playing

Since the return of Premier League football after the COVID-19 lockdown, Jorginho has been frozen out — completely the opposite situation from before the stoppage, when he became Chelsea’s Vice-captain and one of head coach Frank Lampard’s most praised and utilised players in the squad.

No one knows why the sudden and drastic shift occurred, and that apparently includes Jorginho himself, as he revealed after finally making his Project Restart debut in a 10-minute substitute appearance in the 3-2 win over Crystal Palace.

“I don’t really understand it either. In fact, it’s [Lampard’s] choice, right? It’s the coach’s choice, which we need to accept and work hard to get back the opportunity to help the team, which is the most important thing.

“I’m doing my work, training hard, and I’ll be doing everything to be ready to give my contribution to the team in this path if they need me.”

One of several reasons proposed as to why Jorginho is no longer a regular is a potential interest from (and transfer to) Juventus — even after they swapped Miralem Pjanić for Barcelona’s Arthur, seemingly solving one of head coach Maurizio Sarri’s midfield concerns.

However, Jorginho is also claiming ignorance in this aspect. Certainly, no one has contacted him personally, despite all the rumors out there.

“This is another question that I also don’t know how to answer. Honestly nothing has come to me. There are loads of rumours, but there’s been nothing [concrete].

“I don’t know if anything happened between clubs, but the most important thing to me is to finish this season playing well for Chelsea and get the Champions League classification, which is our objective.”

-Jorginho; Source: ESPN Brasil

Only Frank Lampard may be able to answer this question, but in public, he’s not saying much beyond generalities about training hard and having to make decisions. Lampard does insist that Jorginho, who’s showing the proper attitude with these comments, is still in his plans, so perhaps last night’s cameo will prove the beginning of the 28-year-old regista’s reintegration in our starting lineups.

Though it probably won’t stop the rumours.