Roman Abramovich turmoil could give Pep Guardiola his perfect Fernandinho replacement at Man City

The news that the UK Government has frozen the assets of Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich - including the club itself - shook the world of football on Thursday.

After 19 years of trophy-laden success and lavish spending, the Stamford Bridge side look to be in a precarious position. The situation - while its origins go far beyond football - has brought together two topics of conversation: the future of Chelsea's playing squad and the future of Manchester City captain Fernandinho.

The 36-year-old midfielder is in the final few months of his current City contract, and while it is believed the club would be open to offering him a new one-year deal, it is unclear whether he would remain in a solely playing position.

Regardless of what happens, it seems unlikely that the Brazilian would carry on playing beyond the end of the 2022/23 season. In the event that Chelsea have to sell players in order to cope with the government sanctions, could City turn to Stamford Bridge to replace a modern great.

Jorginho

Ah, the one that got away. Back in 2018, City signing Jorginho was the certain-to-happen deal of the summer transfer window. City and Pep Guardiola were huge fans of the then-Napoli midfielder, who had risen to prominence in Maurizio Sarri's exciting team.

Yet despite personal terms being agreed between player and club, the proposed £50m deal never happened. The Italy international followed Sarri to Chelsea instead and Guardiola missed out on his 'perfect' midfielder.

With less than 18 months left on his Chelsea deal, though, Jorginho could be allowed to leave and join up with the coach he has longed dreamed of playing for.

After a patchy few seasons at Chelsea, at Euro 2020 Jorginho showed just how good he could be. In terms of