It’s a strange world we live in when Nicholas Jackson appears as essential to Chelsea’s team as Virgil Van Dijk does to Liverpool or Kevin de Bruyne does to Manchester City.
Despite spending over £1.1 billion since the Todd Boehly-Clearlake consortium bought Chelsea in May 2022, Chelsea find themselves almost three years on with just two recognised strikers – Jackson, bought for £32 million, and 19-year-old Marc Guiu, purchased for under £5 million.
Both were injured for their FA Cup clash against Brighton, resorting head coach Enzo Maresca to field Christopher Nkunku in the number nine position.
Embed from Getty ImagesNkunku failed to take a single shot, and only managed one touch in the box. This touch, a headed pass to Cole Palmer, was made from a rare darting run between the Brighton defence. The Frenchman appears not naturally inclined to make such runs and would rather play deeper, but he has no chance of displacing Palmer from that role.
Chelsea miss their Senegalese striker dearly.
“Sometimes I think you need to play games without players to realise how important they are,” Maresca said on Jackson’s absence in his post-match press conference. “We said many times about Nico, he is important on and off the ball. Off the ball, the intensity of the pressing is very good, and on the ball he is a threat always.”
Embed from Getty ImagesThe Blues’ bloated squad from their billion-pound spending, for the first time since the Boehly era, looked thin. Three of their benched players haven’t played a minute for the club, and academy graduate Tyrique George was called upon in the 74th minute to find an equaliser, albeit unsuccessfully.
The reverse is true for Brighton. Known for their astute business, the 24/25 season was the first time the Seagulls’ net-spend was negative since the 20/21 season.
Embed from Getty ImagesOne of their summer signings, Georginio Rutter, provided the cutting-edge finishing that Chelsea lacked to level the game 1-1, before setting up the second goal that would eventually win Brighton the game.
Where has Chelsea’s spending gone exactly? Over £400 million was in the starting line-up against Brighton, and more than £180 million in signings sat the bench. But where’s the other £500 million?
Embed from Getty ImagesJoao Felix, signed for £45 million in the summer, accounts for a chunk of that missing spending. Yet, the Portuguese forward is exactly that – missing – as he was loaned out to AC Milan on deadline day and scored on his debut.
Despite letting Felix go and Chelsea’s sudden vacuum at striker, Maresca said: “I don’t think we miss Joao. Joao is happy there and we are happy that Joao is happy there.
“The only thing we can say is that no one would predict on deadline day that we would have two strikers injured. This is something that is difficult to think. It unfortunately happened, but Nico can be back very soon.”
Fortunately for Maresca, Jackson could possibly be back for Chelsea’s next game, when the Blues return to the Amex in search of revenge on Friday.
Transfer figures according to Transfermarkt.