Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino always feared that Nicolas Jackson was not going to enough for the Blues this season.
That is according to journalist Dean Jones.
Chelsea signed Nicolas Jackson from Villarreal in a £32m deal over the summer (The Guardian), but Jones has now claimed in a column for GiveMeSport that Mauricio Pochettino felt his side still needed another No.9.
Jackson has really struggled at Chelsea this season, scoring just two goals in nine Premier League appearances.
Mauricio Pochettino wanted another striker on top of Nicolas Jackson
According to Jones, Pochettino felt that Chelsea would have benefited if they had brought in another centre-forward alongside Jackson.
In his GiveMeSport column, Jones said: “Mauricio Pochettino had reservations about their goal profligacy dating back to pre-season. After Jackson was brought into the club, sources indicated to me that Pochettino had a gut feeling the side would still need another premium No.9.”
Nicolas Jackson alone not enough for Chelsea
Jackson is a 22-year-old striker who had never played in the Premier League before he joined Chelsea and lacked a track record, which is understandable given his age. Signing the Senegal international to be their first-choice No.9 always had the potential to backfire.
Ultimately, then, Chelsea really did need to buy another centre-forward, someone to share the goalscoring burden with Jackson.
They did not, though, and the former Villarreal man is now having to deal with a lot of criticism as he continues to struggle with life in the English top flight.
Chelsea take on London rivals Tottenham Hotspur next and it may be worth Pochettino dropping Jackson and just taking him out of the firing line for a bit.
However, with the Argentine not having too many other options at this moment in time, he may be forced to play his summer signing.
It really shows that Chelsea should have signed another centre-forward during the summer. Hopefully they will be able to correct that mistake in January when the transfer window reopens, though you fear their Champions League hopes could be over by then, if they are not already.
