Garth Crooks has named Arsenal midfielder Jorginho as one of the players who has proven him wrong with his impressive recent performances.
The Italy international joined the Gunners from Chelsea late on in the January transfer window, and it looked like a slightly questionable signing at the time, given that the north London giants had been pursuing Moises Caicedo so strongly, as per Fabrizio Romano in his exclusive CaughtOffside column.
Jorginho perhaps looked like a bit of a Plan B option for Arsenal, so it remained to be seen if he could really make an impact at the Emirates Stadium when there was already the strong pairing of Thomas Partey and Granit Xhaka in place in Mikel Arteta’s side.
Still, Crooks now thinks Jorginho is starting to show he’s still got what it takes to influence big games, naming the 31-year-old in his Premier League team of the week after a fine performance in the 4-2 win over Aston Villa.
Writing for BBC Sport, Crooks said: “I wasn’t entirely sure about the merits of his signing. Arsenal’s Thomas Partey and Granit Xhaka are having a good season and Jorginho seemed to have lost whatever it was he had at Chelsea.
“However, I saw signs against Manchester City in midweek that he was getting the taste for the big games again.
“His performance against Aston Villa was biting, while his style of play complements the artistry of Martin Odegaard.
“The Italy international’s 93rd-minute strike may have gone down as an own goal, but he won’t give a monkey’s about that.”