Jorginho 'expected to leave Chelsea on a free transfer'

Jorginho is reportedly likely to leave Chelsea on a free transfer next summer.

The 31-year-old made the move to Stamford Bridge from Napoli in 2018, and he has represented the Blues on 207 occasions in all competitions, scoring 29 goals and contributing nine assists in the process.

Jorginho has again been an important player for Chelsea this season, making 19 appearances, scoring three times in the process.

However, there is currently speculation surrounding his future in the English capital, as his contract is due to expire next June, and discussions over an extension have allegedly stalled.

According to The Athletic, Jorginho is widely expected to depart the Blues on a free transfer next June.

© Reuters

Last week, during an interview with talkSPORT, the Italian signalled a desire to sign a new deal at the club.

"Of course I do, I love Chelsea, but this is a thing I'm not going to think about now. I need to think about winning games. Otherwise it's a problem," he said.

"I'll focus game by game and then we'll see what's going to happen, but my mind is on Chelsea now and trying to win as many games as possible."

Jorginho has made at least 43 appearances in each of his four full seasons with the Blues, and he enjoyed his best scoring campaign in 2021-22, finding the back of the net on nine occasions in all competitions.

© Reuters

Barcelona continue to be linked with the Italian, with the Catalan outfit preparing to sign at least one new central midfielder next year.

However, Jorginho's agent Joao Santos recently denied that there had been any talks with the La Liga side over a possible move.

"I've never met with Barca director Mateu Alemany. We want to extend the contract with Chelsea, it's our priority," Santos told Relevo.

"We only had conversations about Jorginho with Chelsea - no other clubs."

Jorginho has played the full 90 minutes in Chelsea's last two Premier League defeats to Arsenal and Newcastle United.