Jorginho breaks silence after Italy penalty misses lead to World Cup exit

The Ricketts family met with Chelsea supporters and released a statement as Italy’s Jorginho opens up after losing to North Macedonia on Thursday night.

As Chelsea’s search for a new owner continues, one of the interested parties has released a statement amid backlash from Blues supporters.

Meanwhile, penalty taker Jorginho was away with Italy on international duty and was unable to help his side qualify for the 2022 Qatar World Cup, losing to North Macedonia. Jorginho missed two crucial penalties earlier during the group stages, before the reigning European Championship winners were stunned at the death in the playoffs and sent home.

And while injuries are an unfortunate part of football, Chelsea have had to contend with more than any other team in the Premier League and the price of their problems have been calculated.

Here are Mirror Football’s latest Chelsea headlines.

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Ricketts responds to fans

Former Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich was forced to sell the club he’s owned since 2003 amid the ongoing attacks from Russia on Ukraine.

With the Blues undergoing the process of a change in ownership, The Ricketts family, owner of the Major League Baseball franchise the Chicago Cubs, have come under scrutiny from supporters over racist comments made by Joe Ricketts in 2012. Having met with the Chelsea Supporters Trust, the family have issued a statement.

The Ricketts have made the final shortlist of preferred buyers and will be hoping to make the next stage.

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Jorginho’s World Cup heartbreak

Known for his composure from 12 yards out, Jorginho was reflecting on his two penalty misses for Italy against Switzerland last year after the Italians were knocked out of the World Cup against North Macedonia on Thursday night.

The 2006 World Cup winners were sent packing when a late North Macedonia goal secured the 1-0 win and Italy will not be participating in Qatar for the 2022 World Cup. It was a shock defeat for the reigning European Champions and Jorginho was quick to reflect on his previous pain.

“It hurts when I think about it, because I do still think about it and it will haunt me for the rest of my life,” he told RAI Sport, via Football Italia.

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Chelsea’s injury costs

One of the perils of having players on high wages who are then injured is the cost of them missing games.

Since the start of the 2021/2022 season, Chelsea top the list of money lost to players unable to play due to being hurt. With an eye-popping 55 separate injuries in such a short space of time, manager Thomas Tuchel has had to use the team’s depth to remain competitive and near the top of the Premier League.

The total cost of those injuries amounts to £14.02m with the average cost of each injury totalling £250,000.

Read the full story here.