Mauricio Pochettino, the embattled Chelsea Football Club coach has revealed his confidence in the ability of much criticized striker, Nicholas Jackson.
Pochettino who has been under pressure due to the poor performance of the team especially in front of goals, has expressed his confidence that Senegalese striker, Nicholas Jackson would soon find his form and start delivering for the London club.
Jackson, 23, joined Chelsea in 2023 from the Spanish La Liga side, Villareal for £32million.
The gangling striker has come under intense criticism for his lack of basic football ability especially in front of goal. Jackson has been responsible for missing simple sitters and one on one balls. Despite his apparent lack of goal hunger, he continues to man the striking position for Chelsea, much to the chagrin of the club’s fans.
In an effort to improve his goal scoring abilities, Chelsea have now made Jackson to be studying video tapes of efficient goal scorers like Gabriel Batistuta, Didier Drogba, Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, Harry Kane and Ivan Toney.
Pochettino who made a case for Jackson said the striker was young and was starting his first season in England. He praised Jackson as someone who never gives up and that he was scoring goals. He added that Jackson is very humble, loves to learn and eager to watch how the best strikers do their business.
The blues manager also referenced Harry Kane who faced similar issues as a young striker at Tottenham Hotspurs. He said Harry Kane listened to instructions and now he is one of the best strikers in the world. Jackson is doing well and learning, he added.
Many football pundits would disagree with Pochettino’s assessment of the underperforming striker.
Jackson has been so bad in front of goal that club supporters are beginning to question how he made it to the team. The fact that he is even learning how to score goals while leading one of the biggest teams in the English Premier League is a huge red flag.
Chelsea go up next against Brentford and Ivan Toney in the league.
We just hope Jackson would not be watching Toney score goals against Chelsea, while not being able to respond likewise.
It has been a subpar season for the blues, and they would especially be looking for a striker that can actually score goals to help the team during the summer transfer period.
Pochettino might still have the confidence of the Chelsea owners but sticking with Jackson might be a risk taken too far, especially if the poor results keep rolling in.
