Chelsea boss Pochettino hails Nicolas Jackson for proving his critics wrong

Chelsea decided to splash out big money last summer to land Villarreal star Nicolas Jackson to put an end to the goalscoring problems they had last season. 

However, the Senegalese striker has failed to live up to the expectations of many fans of the London club despite scoring 17 goals and assisting six times in all competitions this season, as the Blues attacker has missed many chances that could have earned his side a key point. 

In fact, Jackson ranks alongside Darwin Nunez and Calvert-Lewin among the worst finishers in the Premier League when comparing his expected goals and those he has actually scored. However, Blues boss Mauricio Pochettino has come out to defend the striker against the criticism.

"I think Nico has the potential to be a very, very good striker. A fantastic striker. Only it’s about patience and time. He is a good example. He got amazing criticism from the beginning because he was compared to Drogba from the start," he said.

"But to judge and be so radical in the opinions, be careful. Because I think it’s about to see what is going on, what we see and Nico, I think through confidence and working really hard is changing the opinion," concluded the Argentinian coach. 

 

May 13, 2024