£25m Chelsea player will surely meet the same fate as Nicolas Jackson if things don’t improve

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Even though Nicolas Jackson was a key starter for Chelsea across the past two seasons, he was shown the exit door in the summer. If one current Blues star doesn’t up his game this campaign, we suspect he could meet the same fate.

Nicolas Jackson, who joined the Blues in 2023, scored 30 goals in 81 appearances across all competitions over two campaigns. It always felt like fans and pundits were never quite sold on him, though.

Jackson left Chelsea to join Bayern Munich on deadline day of the transfer window, signing on loan with an obligation to buy.

It goes to show that even the regular starters in the team can’t be sure of their futures, so you should always feel pressure when you are playing at Stamford Bridge. Apparently, Moises Caicedo and Cole Palmer are Chelsea’s only unsellable players who won’t be sold at any price.

The Blues clearly didn’t feel Jackson was strong enough to be the main starter, so they signed Joao Pedro and Liam Delap as upgrades in attack.

• READ MORE: How Nicolas Jackson stopped former Chelsea teammate getting potential deadline day exit

Robert Sanchez could follow Nicolas Jackson exit if he’s not careful

Like Jackson, Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sanchez is an individual whose reputation with supporters has been quite delicate since he joined for £25m (BBC) in 2023. He often receives plenty of criticism in the media, too.

Jamie Carragher doesn’t think Chelsea can win the Premier League until they make a change in-between the sticks.

The fact of the matter is that Sanchez is still in possession of the shirt as Chelsea’s first-choice keeper. While that’s the case, he has the opportunity to prove all his doubters wrong.

The 27-year-old gloveman ticks a lot of boxes in net, particularly with his size and shot-stopping ability. He does sometimes let himself down with his passing and concentration, though.

Chelsea decided to keep Sanchez over the summer despite links to various goalkeeper targets, so we feel it’s up to him now during his third season in West London to raise his levels and find consistency. If not, we suspect the pressure on him will only intensify and lead to the club eventually replacing him next year like they’ve just done with Jackson.

How has Robert Sanchez started the season?

After an impressive Club World Cup in the summer, Sanchez should have entered the 2025/26 season with a bit of confidence behind his back.

So far, the Spaniard has had a relatively comfortable start to the campaign, having already kept two clean sheets in three matches. Perhaps he could have done better with the long-range goal he conceded to West Ham’s Lucas Paqueta, though.

Darren Bent admits Sanchez is winning him over with his recent Chelsea performances.

We are intrigued to see how the Blues keeper is valued in a few months, especially after he’s had the chance to prove himself on the Champions League stage.