Mikel Arteta and Kai Havertz have called Jorginho “world class” after the midfielder’s Player of the Match performance against Newcastle United.

Jorginho kicked off February with a fantastic performance in Arsenal’s 3-1 win over Premier League leaders Liverpool, but the midfielder had to settle for a substitute role over the next few games.

Mikel Arteta explained before the West Ham United game that Jorginho has been struggling with an injury issue all season, so he wasn’t in the right state to play consecutive fixtures at that stage.

But the Italian international returned to the Arsenal starting lineup on Saturday, against Newcastle United, and he ended up winning the Player of the Match award.

Goalscorer Kai Havertz benefitted from Jorginho’s return to the team, not least in the build-up to his goal. It was Jorginho’s lobbed pass that got Gabriel Martinelli in behind, with the Brazilian squaring to Havertz for a simple finish.

After the game, Havertz had a lot of praise for his former Chelsea teammate.

“I know him a lot, so for me it is nice to play with him, he knows me well,” Havertz said. “It makes life easy for me – he is a world class player.”

Arteta was then asked about the “world class” tag, and he was clearly in agreement with Havertz.

“He is certainly [world class],” Arteta said. “He’s a top player, especially when the opponents have certain behaviours or certain set-up.

“The way I can imagine the game, he is going to have a big impact, but I think you have to do it at this level and when he’s not playing consistently, credit to him because he was magnificent today, again.”

Jorginho hasn’t been a consistent starter for Arsenal this season, but he’s made a big impact when he’s been in the side, and he’s up to 25 appearances in all competitions.

The Gunners will need him at his best if they’re going to achieve something between now and the end of the season.