Morning all.

A very quick blog for you this morning because some semblance of summer appears to have arrived in Ireland, so I’m going to play some golf while it lasts. The main story this morning is the fact Jorginho has extended his contract, although the duration of the new deal is a bit strange.

It was thought a two year deal was on the cards, but it’s being reported as one which only runs until the summer of 2025. Even the club themselves are simply briefing it as ‘short term’, so it’s a bit odd in that respect. Maybe there’s a +1 option. Then again, if the player has no issue with just the 12 months (there or thereabouts), that seems ok to me. He is 32 now, and while his game isn’t dependent on pace, he can’t go on forever. I like him, I think he’s got quality and experience which adds value to the squad, but it does feel like an arrangement that acknowledges he is someone in the latter stages of his career.

Speaking to the official site, he said:

I want to win as much as I can, and enjoy the moment because that’s really important for me. If you are somewhere where you are not enjoying it, or you are not happy, then it’s difficult. So moving forward is trying to be happy and achieve as much as we can.

I feel really good here. Just to know that they appreciate me and want me to stay longer as well, it’s a big thing for me. I feel that I have more to do, so that’s the reason why I’m staying.

The question of what happens with midfield in the summer is such an interesting one. Kai Havertz was brought in as an 8, but has thrived playing further forward. A return of 7 goals and 10 assists in all competitions has raised the question about where Declan Rice should play. He was brought in as a 6, but has been fantastic when deployed as an 8. So, it’s quite possible that the kind of player Arsenal initially thought they’d want in the summer market is different from the player they’re targetting now.

I’ve said it often, but I think Mikel Arteta’s preference would be a ‘younger Jorginho’, and perhaps it’s not a coincidence that as well as someone Martin Zubimendi, who we have tried to bring in before, we’ve recently been linked with Newcastle’s Bruno Guimaraes. Perhaps a player who would have to shed some recent history with the fanbase, but whose talent and ability is unquestionably a good fit for this squad. Obviously we have bigger fish to fry right at this moment in time, but it is interesting to consider.

With Mohamed Elneny set to leave at the end of his contract, and a question mark still over the future of Thomas Partey, there could be quite a midfield shake-up this summer, and I’m fascinated to see where it goes. We might well have to adapt to the idea that two players we signed for specific roles last summer are doing so well having both shifted forward, that our needs have changed. Let’s see.

Beyond that, there’s not much going on. Mikel Arteta will meet the press a bit later ahead of our trip to Man Utd on Sunday, so we might get some team news from him at that point. We’ll cover it all on Arseblog News, and we’ll discuss Sunday’s game in plenty of depth in our Patreon preview podcast.

For now, there’s a new Arsecast below if you haven’t had a chance to listen already. Catch you later.

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