Jorginho (footballer, born December 1991) facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

In this Portuguese name, "Filho" is a generational suffix meaning "son", which is used for someone whose name is the same as their father, like "Jr." in English.

Quick facts for kids
Jorginho

Jorginho lining up for Chelsea in 2021

Personal information

Full name

Jorge Luiz Frello Filho

Date of birth

20 December 1991 (age 33)

Place of birth

Imbituba, Brazil

Height

1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)

Position(s)

Defensive midfielder

Team information

Current team

Flamengo

Number

Youth career

2006–2007

Brusque

2007–2010

Hellas Verona

Senior career*

Years

Team

Apps

(Gls)

2010–2014

Hellas Verona

(11)

2010–2011

→ Sambonifacese (loan)

(1)

2014–2018

Napoli

133

(2)

2018–2023

Chelsea

143

(21)

2023–2025

Arsenal

(0)

2025–

Flamengo

(0)

International career^‡

2016–

Italy

(5)

Medal record

Men's Football

Representing Italy
UEFA European Championship
Winner	2020
UEFA Nations League
Third	2021
Third	2023
CONMEBOL–UEFA Cup of Champions
Runner-up	2022

*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 03:56, 17 July 2025 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 19:10, 18 May 2025 (UTC)

Jorge Luiz Frello Filho (born 20 December 1991), known as Jorginho, is a professional footballer. He plays as a defensive midfielder for the Brazilian club Flamengo. Jorginho was born in Brazil but plays for the Italy national team.

Jorginho moved to Italy when he was 15 years old. He started his professional football journey with the Hellas Verona youth team. Later, he joined their senior team. In 2014, he moved to Napoli, where he won the Coppa Italia and the Supercoppa Italiana. He played 160 games for Napoli.

In 2018, Jorginho signed with Chelsea. With Chelsea, he won the UEFA Europa League in his first season. He also won the UEFA Champions League in the 2020–21 season. After four and a half years at Chelsea, Jorginho joined Arsenal in 2023. In June 2025, he moved to Flamengo.

Jorginho started playing for the Italy national team in 2016. He was a key player when Italy won UEFA Euro 2020. For his great performances, he was named in the Team of the Tournament. In 2021, he was named UEFA Men's Player of the Year. He is the only Italian player to have won this award. He also finished third in the voting for the Ballon d'Or.

Early Life and Football Dreams

Jorginho was born in Imbituba, a city in Brazil. He moved to Italy when he was 15. He has Italian family roots, which helped him get Italian citizenship.

His mother played a big role in his love for football. When he was playing for the Verona youth team, he almost quit. He found out his agent was taking advantage of him financially. An emotional phone call with his mother helped him decide to keep playing.

As a child, Jorginho looked up to Romanian player Gheorghe Hagi. His friends even called him Haginho. He also admired famous players like Ronaldo Nazario, Ronaldinho, Kaka, Andrea Pirlo, and Xavi.

Club Career Highlights

Starting at Hellas Verona

Jorginho began his career in the youth team of Hellas Verona. In 2010, he was loaned to Sambonifacese. There, he played 31 games and scored one goal. He also helped his team by setting up ten goals from midfield.

He made his first team debut for Verona on 4 September 2011. This was in a match against Sassuolo.

Time at Napoli

Jorginho playing for Napoli in 2016

On 18 January 2014, Jorginho joined Napoli. He quickly helped them win the Coppa Italia on 3 May. Napoli beat Fiorentina 3–1 in the final.

In December 2014, Napoli won the 2014 Supercoppa Italiana against Juventus. Jorginho played in this match. At first, he found it hard to get into the team. But when Maurizio Sarri became manager, things changed. Sarri used him as a deep-lying midfielder. This role allowed Jorginho to control the game with his passing. In the 2017–18 season, he became a very important player for Napoli.

Moving to Chelsea

First Season: 2018–19

On 14 July 2018, Jorginho signed a five-year contract with Chelsea. He joined on the same day his former manager, Maurizio Sarri, also moved to Chelsea. His transfer fee was about £50 million.

He played his first game for Chelsea on 5 August 2018. It was against Manchester City in the 2018 FA Community Shield. Six days later, he scored his first Premier League goal from a penalty kick. This was in a 3–0 win against Huddersfield Town.

Jorginho set a new record for Chelsea in a league match against Newcastle United. He completed 158 passes, which was a club record. He later broke the record for most attempted passes in a Premier League game. This happened in a match against West Ham United. On 29 May 2019, Jorginho played in Chelsea's 4–1 win over Arsenal. This victory secured the UEFA Europa League title for Chelsea.

Winning the Champions League: 2020–21

Jorginho playing for Chelsea in 2020

Jorginho scored Chelsea's first goal of the 2020–21 season. It was a penalty in a 3–1 win against Brighton & Hove Albion. He scored two more penalties in a 4–0 home win against Crystal Palace. He was Chelsea's top scorer in the Premier League that season, with all his goals coming from penalties.

On 29 May 2021, Jorginho won his first UEFA Champions League title with Chelsea. They beat Manchester City 1–0 in the final.

Success and Awards: 2021–22

Jorginho helped Chelsea win the 2021 UEFA Super Cup on 12 August 2021. He scored a penalty in the shootout against Villarreal. On 26 August 2021, he was named UEFA Men's Player of the Year Award. He beat his Chelsea teammate N'Golo Kanté and Manchester City's Kevin De Bruyne.

In October, Jorginho was one of five Chelsea players on the shortlist for the 2021 Ballon d'Or. On 30 October, he scored a penalty against Newcastle. This made him the first Premier League player to score 10 consecutive goals from the penalty spot. On 29 November, he finished third in the Ballon d'Or voting.

In February 2022, Jorginho played in the 2021 FIFA Club World Cup. Chelsea won the title for the first time in their history.

Moving to Arsenal

Jorginho joined Arsenal on 31 January 2023. The fee was £12 million. He signed a contract for one and a half years. He made his debut on 4 February against Everton. On 18 February, his shot hit the crossbar and went in off the goalkeeper's head. This gave Arsenal a late 3–2 lead against Aston Villa. Arsenal went on to win 4–2.

On 29 November 2023, Jorginho scored his first goal for Arsenal. It was a penalty in a 6–0 win against RC Lens in the Champions League. He extended his contract with Arsenal in May 2024. He left the club in May 2025 after two seasons.

Joining Flamengo

On 6 June 2025, Jorginho signed with the Brazilian club Flamengo. His contract is until July 2028. He scored his first goal for Flamengo from a penalty kick on 29 June 2025. This was in a FIFA Club World Cup match against Bayern Munich.

International Career with Italy

Jorginho has both Italian and Brazilian citizenship. This meant he could play for either national team. In 2014, he decided he wanted to play for Italy.

He received his first call-up to the Italy senior squad in March 2016. He made his international debut on 24 March in a friendly match against Spain.

Jorginho made his first competitive appearance for Italy in November 2017. This was in a World Cup play-off match against Sweden. Italy lost the play-off and did not qualify for the World Cup for the first time in 60 years.

On 7 September 2018, Jorginho scored his first international goal. It was a penalty in a UEFA Nations League match against Poland. He scored more penalty goals in UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying matches. These goals helped Italy qualify for UEFA Euro 2020.

In June 2021, he was part of Italy's squad for Euro 2020. On 6 July, in the semi-final against Spain, Jorginho scored the winning penalty in the shootout. This sent Italy to the final. In the final against England, his penalty was saved. However, Italy still won the shootout 3–2. Jorginho was a standout player in the tournament. He covered the most distance and made the most interceptions. He was included in the team of the tournament.

In November 2021, Jorginho missed a crucial penalty in a World Cup qualifying match against Switzerland. This draw meant Italy had to go through play-offs. In March 2022, Italy lost their play-off semi-final and failed to qualify for the World Cup again.

Player Profile

How Jorginho Plays

Jorginho playing for Napoli in 2014

Jorginho is known for being calm and able to play in different midfield roles. He is often used as a central midfielder in a 4–3–3 formation. He is good at winning the ball back and starting attacks. He has excellent vision and passing skills.

He usually plays as a deep-lying playmaker. This means he stays in front of the defenders. From this position, he controls the speed of his team's play with short, accurate passes. Even though he is not very fast, he moves well without the ball. This helps him find space to receive passes and connect with teammates.

Jorginho is also a very accurate penalty taker. He often uses a special hop before kicking the ball. Most of his goals come from the penalty spot.

He has said that Andrea Pirlo, Xavi, Ronaldo, and Ronaldinho inspired him. He also admired Gheorghe Hagi when he was young.

What People Say About Him

Jorginho is nicknamed 'Il Professore' (The Professor) by his Italian teammates. This is because he is a leader and helps organize the team. He also talks a lot during games to direct his teammates.

For his great performances in 2021, Jorginho won the UEFA Player of the Year award. His Chelsea manager, Thomas Tuchel, called him "one of the very best midfielders in the world."

Personal Life

Jorginho married Natalia Leteri in 2017. They have two children, a son and a daughter. They divorced in 2019.

Since 2019, he has been in a relationship with Catherine Harding. They have one son, born in August 2020. They announced their engagement in December 2023.

Career Statistics

Club Appearances and Goals

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club	Season	League			National cup		League cup		Continental		Other		Total
Club	Season	Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Sambonifacese	2010–11	Lega Pro Seconda Divisione	31	1	—		—		—		—		31	1
Hellas Verona	2011–12	Serie B	30	2	1	0	—		—		2	0	33	2
	2012–13	Serie B	41	2	3	0	—		—		—		44	2
	2013–14	Serie A	18	7	1	0	—		—		—		19	7
	Total		89	11	5	0	—		—		2	0	96	11
Napoli	2013–14	Serie A	15	0	4	1	—		—		—		19	1
	2014–15	Serie A	23	0	1	1	—		8	0	1	0	33	1
	2015–16	Serie A	35	0	1	0	—		2	0	—		38	0
	2016–17	Serie A	27	0	0	0	—		4	0	—		31	0
	2017–18	Serie A	33	2	1	0	—		5	2	—		39	4
	Total		133	2	7	2	—		19	2	1	0	160	6
Chelsea	2018–19	Premier League	37	2	2	0	3	0	11	0	1	0	54	2
	2019–20	Premier League	31	4	4	0	1	0	7	2	1	1	44	7
	2020–21	Premier League	28	7	2	0	1	0	12	1	—		43	8
	2021–22	Premier League	29	6	4	0	4	1	8	2	2	0	47	9
	2022–23	Premier League	18	2	1	0	0	0	6	1	—		25	3
	Total		143	21	13	0	9	1	44	6	4	1	213	29
Arsenal	2022–23	Premier League	14	0	—		—		2	0	—		16	0
	2023–24	Premier League	24	0	1	0	2	0	9	1	0	0	36	1
	2024–25	Premier League	15	0	1	0	5	0	6	1	—		27	1
	Total		53	0	2	0	7	0	17	2	0	0	79	2
Flamengo	2025	Série A	2	0	0	0	—		0	0	4	1	6	1
Career total			451	35	27	2	16	1	80	10	11	2	585	50

International Appearances and Goals

Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Italy	2016	2	0
	2017	1	0
	2018	10	1
	2019	9	3
	2020	5	1
	2021	15	0
	2022	4	0
	2023	4	0
	2024	7	0
Total		57	5

Scores and results list Italy's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Jorginho goal.

List of international goals scored by Jorginho
No.	Date	Venue	Cap	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	7 September 2018	Stadio Renato Dall'Ara, Bologna, Italy	9	Poland	1–1	1–1	2018–19 UEFA Nations League A
2	8 September 2019	Tampere Stadium, Tampere, Finland	19	Finland	2–1	2–1	UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying
3	12 October 2019	Stadio Olimpico, Rome, Italy	20	Greece	1–0	2–0	UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying
4	18 November 2019	Stadio Renzo Barbera, Palermo, Italy	22	Armenia	7–0	9–1	UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying
5	15 November 2020	Mapei Stadium – Città del Tricolore, Reggio Emilia, Italy	26	Poland	1–0	2–0	2020–21 UEFA Nations League A