Arsenal's victory over Liverpool yesterday evening was one to remember, for the home fans anyway.
As they did in their FA Cup encounter just last month, Mikel Arteta's side came out flying, pinning the Reds into their half and creating some great chances. Only this time, they were able to put them away, and now they're firmly back in the Premier League title race.
The Gunners were the superior side to a man on the night – excluding a mad 30 seconds at the end of the first half – and while there were various stand-out players, it was the experienced and calm Jorginho who just about stood above the rest, putting in a remarkable performance and showing why the Arsenal boss has so much faith in him.
The Italian was near enough perfect, and while he's closer to the end of his career than the start, the Arsenal faithful can rest easy, as Hale End could be about to deliver a ready-made replacement in the coming years.
Jorginho's game in numbers
While the team's performance was impressive as a whole, if there was one area of the pitch where Arsenal well and truly dominated their northern opponents, it was midfield.
The Jorginho and Declan Rice duo played as if they were a trio, covering every blade of grass, making brilliant tackle after brilliant tackle and pressing the Reds' midfield as if they weren't some of the best players in the league.
The Standard's Simon Collings gave both of them a 9/10 for their efforts, claiming that the 32-year-old 'rolled back the years' and put in 'one of his best performances for the Gunners', which is hard to disagree with.
In his 97 minutes on the pitch, the former Chelsea ace had 71 touches, completed 45 of his 53 passes (85%), made one key pass, won four ground duels, won three aerial duels, made two clearances, three interceptions, and two tackles.
It is hard to overstate just how vital the Imbituba-born maestro was for the Gunners yesterday, and while he may have been looked at as nothing more than reliable cover by Arsenal fans beforehand, there is a strong argument that he should be in the starting lineup from here onwards.
Figure
97
71
45/53 (85%)
1
9 (4)
4 (3)
2
3
2
And, once he finally does hang up his boots or move on, it looks as if the club might already have their own ready-made replacement to step into the void.
Why fans should be excited about Salah-Eddine Oulad M'Hand
So the first thing to clear up is that, as things stand, and probably for the next two to three years, Salah-Eddine Oulad M'Hand is simply not going to be ready to step into the shoes of Jorginho, nor is he likely to break into the first team, but that's alright.
The young Dutchman only turned 20 in the summer, and with the Italian still looking fit, Rice being the world-class midfielder he is, and the reasonable chance of midfield reinforcements arriving in the summer, there is no need to rush the youngster's development.
That said, his performances at the youth level serve as a promise for what could be an impressive senior career. The Den-Haag-born midfielder started his footballing journey with Dutch giants Feyenoord, before joining the Hale End setup in 2020.
In all, he made 38 appearances for the Eredivisie side's youth teams, scoring three goals and providing three assists along the way, whereas, in England, he has made 26 appearances for the Gunners' U23 team, scoring an impressive six goals and providing four assists to boot.
Salah-Eddine Oulad M'Hand's Youth numbers
Club
Feyenoord
Arsenal
Appearances
38
26
Goals
3
6
Assists
3
4
Goal Involvements per match
0.15
0.38
All Stats via Transfermarkt
Following this impressive stint in the youth sides, Arsenal opted to send Salah on loan to Championship side Hull City last season, but an injury in preseason saw him return to the Gunners in the winter break, and unfortunately he wasn't able to make a single appearance for the Tigers due to this time on the sidelines.
Instead of simply returning to junior football this season, he has been back in the Netherlands, on loan with FC Den Bosch, where he has made eight appearances thus far.
While the former Feyenoord prospect has already endured some significant setbacks in his short career, the fact that he is back playing again should show Arteta and Co that he has the right mentality to make it at the Emirates.
Salah-Eddine Oulad M'Hand could be Jorginho's heir apparent
Described as a player who has "worked tirelessly" to get where he is by Chris Weatley, Salah unquestionably has the drive and commitment to replicate Jorginho's journey. However, the pair have more than grit and determination in common.
Both players have the ability to play in both a central and defensive midfield role. While the Italian prefers the latter and the youngster the former, they're both malleable to their manager's needs.
Where Jorginho has been deployed in a central midfield three times this year alone, Salah has occasionally played as a six during his time at Arsenal.
However, with Rice himself telling TNT Sport (via The Athletic) earlier this season that defensive midfield is his best position, it's unlikely that either the experienced Italian or former Feyenoord prodigy will be tasked with taking over that six-role long-term.
So, the perfect heir will need to excel primarily as a central midfielder who has the ability to move up and down the pitch according to the needs of his manager and team.
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Ultimately, it will always be hard to replace a player as intelligent, classy and useful as Jorginho is, but the "superb" Salah, as talent scout Jacek Kulig described him, certainly looks as if he could get close, and in doing so, potentially saving the club an awful lot of money, money that could be better spent further up the pitch.