14 August 2023 , 10:34
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Mauricio Pochettino has joked Nicolas Jackson "didn't like me" after deploying him as a lone striker against Liverpool on Sunday afternoon.
Chelsea were held to a 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge, with Jackson putting in a promising display on his Premier League debut. Sky Sports pundit Daniel Sturridge praised the 22-year-old forward before the game and has backed him to become a "star" this season.
Jackson completed a £32million move from Villarreal earlier this summer after scoring 12 LaLiga goals last term. He formed a good partnership with Christopher Nkunku during pre-season but that was scuppered when the Frenchman suffered a serious knee injury.
Nkunku has undergone surgery to fix the issue and is not expected to play again for several months. Chelsea boss Pochettino is now trying to find a new strike partner for Jackson but is remaining positive, insisting "these things happen in football".
"I think he was fantastic," Pochettino told Sky Sports when asked about Jackson's performance on Sunday. "We knew him because he was playing in Spain last season - I used to live in Spain, I spend a lot of time there. The only problem was that he was a little bit isolated sometimes, and sometimes he needed more help.
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"He was fighting really well, I am very happy with his performance, but I think like a team and like a coach, we need to provide for him and play closer to him and help him.
"He was fighting sometimes too much, isolated, I think he didn’t like me a lot! But I think it’s about improving every day, every week.
"It’s true that we miss a player like Nkunku who was perfect in combination with him, they were doing really well in pre-season. The plan was to play with him, but we need to adapt. These things happen in football and we need to always be positive."
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Although Jackson may not like playing up front on his own, his ability has caught Sturridge's attention. The former England international, who played for both Liverpool and Chelsea, has joined Sky Sports as a pundit for the new season.
Sturridge told his new employers before the game: "I think the signing of Nicolas Jackson, for me, is a very good signing. I liken his style to a hybrid of a young Mario Balotelli in terms of the skills and the presence and strength, and Didier Drogba.
"Of course he doesn’t have as powerful a shot of those two players but his ability around the box, his one-twos, his flicks and tricks. These are things of his height and stature are not normally used to having.
"I think his ability on the ball to manipulate it, to create problems for defenders, he’s very mobile, he makes very good runs, he makes peeling runs in between the two centre-halves and he’s got blistering pace. When he runs through it’s very difficult to catch him."