Arsenal are willing to listen to offers for midfielder Jorginho this summer, 90min understands.
The 31-year-old moved to the Emirates Stadium in January as Mikel Arteta looked to galvanise his squad for an unexpected push towards the Premier League title.
Squad depth had been an issue for the Spaniard, who relied heavily on the likes of Thomas Partey, Granit Xhaka and Martin Odegaard in the first five months of the season, and Jorginho’s experience of competing at the top level was seen as a welcome boost as Arsenal looked to shake off the relentless Manchester City.
Jorginho dislodged Partey from his role as a deep-lying playmaker, making 14 appearances in total, but wasn’t able to prevent Arsenal’s incredible run of results from tailing off. They eventually finished as runners-up to City but remained comfortably ahead of Manchester United and Newcastle.
However, Jorginho’s signing was only ever seen as a short-term measure, and 90min understands that Arsenal will not stand in his way this summer should he have the chance to return to Italy.
Former Chelsea manager Maurizio Sarri, now in charge of Lazio, is keen to reunite with Jorginho at the Stadio Olimpico, and 90min understands that Serie A winners Napoli and Champions League semi-finalists AC Milan are also interested.
Arsenal are not actively looking to force Jorginho out of the club but are acutely aware that they need to make space in their squad for incomings. Granit Xhaka is leaving the club to join Bayer Leverkusen and Albert Sambi Lokonga, whose loan spell at Crystal Palace didn’t work out, is also likely to be moved on.
Their exits could facilitate the arrivals of Declan Rice and Moises Caicedo, with Arsenal keen to sign both players despite their lofty price tags.
West Ham captain Rice, who lifted the Europa Conference League on Wednesday night, wants to move on to further his ambitions but 90min understands the club will hold firm with their £100m vaulation. Chairman David Sullivan has at least confirmed he’ll be leaving.
As for Brighton, they may be willing to accept around £80m for Caicedo – a figure Arsenal were not prepared to way in the January transfer window. The Gunners may need to pull out all the stops this time round as big-spending Chelsea are interested in signing the pair for new head coach Mauricio Pochettino – they too have players to move on and a wage bill that needs significant trimming.