He's worse than Jackson: Chelsea must axe their "total waste of money"

Chelsea’s chances of securing a place in the Champions League were dealt a blow when they lost to rivals Newcastle United 2-0 in the Premier League on Sunday.

The Blues remain fifth in the division, in the last Champions League spot, but only one point separates them from Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest in the table, which tees up a tense final two matchdays.

As shown in the highlights above, Enzo Maresca’s side were not helped by Nicolas Jackson’s decision to charge into Sven Botman whilst the ball was in the air.

The Senegal international had a look at the Dutch defender and moved his defender into the upper chest and lower face of the Newcastle star whilst grappling to win an aerial duel, which led to VAR recommending a red card for the striker.

Jackson will, now, sit out the final two matches of the Premier League season, and the first game of the 2025/26 campaign, after being hit with a three-game ban for violent conduct, which is a big blow for the Blues.

Why losing Nicolas Jackson is a big blow for Chelsea

The former Villarreal star scored three goals in his last three games before the trip to St. James’ Park and looked to be on his way back to his best in front of goal after a barren run.

Prior to his strike against Everton in the Premier League last month, Jackson had gone 13 matches without a goal in all competitions for the Blues, stretching back to the middle of December.

However, a goal against the Toffees and two goals against Djurgarden in the Conference League suggested that he was on track to play a pivotal role in the final few games of the season.

There is little doubt that Jackson is a player who has the ability to make a big impact in the final third for Chelsea, despite his tendency to miss ‘big chances’, because he has had plenty of impressive moments since his move to Stamford Bridge.

As you can see in the table above, the former LaLiga star has been a wasteful finisher, missing 43 ‘big chances’, but he has also been directly involved in 34 goals in 65 Premier League games for the club.

This shows that, despite his flaws, Jackson is a constant threat who can be a difference-maker at the top end of the pitch as either a scorer or a creator of goals, which is why losing him to suspension for the last two games of the campaign is a blow for Maresca.

The 23-year-old centre-forward, who scored a hat-trick against Spurs last season, is Chelsea’s best number nine option and has proven that he can score goals in the Premier League, hence why he would have been useful to have as an option heading into these last two games.

What makes the situation even worse for the Blues is that Christopher Nkunku, their other forward option, is currently out with an injury that could keep him out of the last two matches if he does not recover in time.

That is not the only problem with the France international, though, as he has also failed to deliver quality when called upon this season when fit, which is why the club must ruthlessly cash in on him this summer.

Why Chelsea must cash in on Christopher Nkunku

The Premier League side reportedly paid £52m to bring him to Stamford Bridge from RB Leipzig in the summer of 2023, as they aimed to bolster the quality of their attacking options, having offloaded Kai Havertz to Arsenal that summer.

Nkunku scored 70 goals and provided 55 assists in 17 matches for Leipzig in all competitions during his time in Germany, which made him an exciting signing, at face value, as he had a history of providing consistent quality in a major European league.

Unfortunately, however, the France international has been unable to translate that form over to English football in his two seasons at Stamford Bridge to date, as he has struggled to make an impact in the final third for the Blues.

After the club’s exit from the FA Cup at the hands of Brighton earlier this year, former Chelsea player Craig Burley criticised the 27-year-old star, who reportedly earns £195k-per-week, and described him as a “waste of money“.

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Burley said: “There was no cutting edge to the game. [Cole] Palmer has stopped influencing games like he was. Nkunku up front, I mean what a total waste of money he’s been.”

It is hard to argue with his assessment of Nkunku’s situation because he has not provided much quality back on the pitch to make up for the £52m fee and £195k-per-week wages as a forward player.

As you can see in the table above, the French flop has only been involved in seven goals in 38 appearances in the Premier League since the start of last season, and has underperformed his xG overall, which shows that he has been even worse than Jackson in the last two campaigns.

The experienced forward has not delivered goals or assists on a regular, or even semi-regular, basis in the top-flight, despite the huge outlay to bring him to London almost two years ago, whilst the Senegal international has, at least, delivered 34 goals and assists.

Arsenal have been linked with an interest in Nkunku ahead of the summer transfer window, and Chelsea must finally cash in on the big-money flop in an attempt to recoup some of the £52m fee that they splashed out on his services.

The French dud has not done enough to suggest that he will be a key player for Maresca moving forward, given his lack of quality in the Premier League, which is why the club should ruthlessly ditch him this summer, whether that is to Arsenal or another club.

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