Blues are on the brink of losing target Jorginho to Chelsea
CITY look set to miss on key target Jorginho after Chelsea’s late swoop.
The Blues have been working on signing the Napoli midfielder for months and were confident they would be able to announce him as their player ahead of the pre-season tour.
However, they were stunned when Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis announced on Wednesday the player had decided on a move to Chelsea because he would rather live in London rather than Manchester.
That did not tally with everything the player’s entourage have said publicly over the summer, and sources close to Jorginho were suggesting as late as yesterday he still wanted a move to City.
However, Italian media reported that - despite what De Laurentiis said Jorginho could be part of a deal to take former Napoli boss Maurizio Sarri to Chelsea.
And with the Blues finally relieving Antonio Conte of his duties as head coach according to reports, barring another unlikely U-turn, the path is clear for them to announce both Napoli imports once they have reached an agreement with the Serie A club.
Mattia Grassani, a lawyer acting for Napoli, suggested the clubs were working on a ‘non-belligerence pact’ to ensure Sarri could not take any other players to Chelsea.
“There was a meeting in Rome at the offices of (President Aurelio) De Laurentiis, without Sarri,” he added.
“We exchanged views with the English club and the coach’s lawyers: this matter is 10 times more complicated compared to when he arrived.
“The issue is there are so many clauses that De Laurentiis is looking after personally. He wants to leave nothing to chance for the rest of the years that Sarri will be on the Chelsea bench, assuming that should happen.”