ESPN pundit suggests £32m player is causing a problem for Chelsea

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Chelsea striker Nicolas Jackson managed to score against the Premier League champions last weekend, but he still has his doubters.

Despite his goal against Manchester City and hat-trick versus Tottenham Hotspur, Shaka Hislop has said on ESPN FC that Nicolas Jackson is not the centre-forward Chelsea need him to be.

Before his four strikes against City and Tottenham, the 22-year-old had really struggled and was being heavily criticised.

And it is quite clear to see that he still does have his critics despite becoming a bit of a Chelsea hero of late.

Nicolas Jackson not Chelsea’s answer

According to Hislop, Chelsea’s struggles to beat sides who defend deep have been down to Jackson not being a penalty box striker.

Speaking about the Senegal international on ESPN FC, he said: “Once teams drop off and sit deep, that’s when you need your centre-forward and Nicolas Jackson just has not been that player.

“Nicolas Jackson is not the six-yard box striker that Chelsea need him to be and that, for me, is why Chelsea are struggling against teams who want to sit deep.”

Nicolas Jackson buying himself time

Maybe Jackson is not the solution and will eventually be replaced. There is still a lot of talk about Chelsea bringing in a new striker, with Napoli’s Victor Osimhen being one player they are interested in.

However, Jackson is not going down without a fight and has bought himself more time.

He really could have sunk after all of the criticism he was getting, but he did not. The Senegal star, who arrived at Chelsea from Villarreal over the summer in a £32m deal (The Guardian), kept going and ended up with four goals against two of the best teams in the country as a result.

You would now expect Mauricio Pochettino to persist with him for a bit longer, maybe even beyond the January transfer window.

Jackson now needs to start scoring in the smaller games, against the likes of Brentford and Bournemouth, who both managed to shut Chelsea out this season. Do that, and the critics will surely start to go away.

His next challenge will come in the shape of Newcastle United, whom Chelsea take on after the international break.