Nicolas Jackson responds to defiant message after confirmed Chelsea exit
Nicolas Jackson has responded after a bullish message was posted following the confirmation of a Chelsea player’s departure.
Jackson’s future at Stamford Bridge has been a hot topic of conversation this summer after his poor performances at the Club World Cup and Chelsea’s impressive attacking transfer business.
Enzo Maresca has moved to sign Liam Delap from Ipswich Town and bring in Brighton & Hove Albion striker Joao Pedro, so the Senegalese international has been pushed down the striker pecking order.
Former scout Mick Brown told Football Insider in June that Chelsea are ready to accept offers for Jackson this summer amid impatience around his performances, while Football Insider recently revealed that Aston Villa are interested in Jackson.
Sources have told Football Insider that Chelsea have offered Jackson, Tosin Adarabioyo and cash to Villa in an exchange bid for Morgan Rogers, while Brown has revealed to Football Insider that Man United are unlikely to take their interest in Jackson any further as they prioritise other targets, and he has now reacted to a defiant message after a departure was announced.
Joao Felix leaves Chelsea for Al-Nassr
Chelsea’s big spending in the last few years has seen them stockpile players at an alarming rate, and one of their stranger transfer decisions was signing Joao Felix on a permanent deal last summer after he had struggled to make his mark on loan at the club in 2022/23.
Felix joined AC Milan on loan in February, and he has now left Stamford Bridge for good after Chelsea confirmed his exit on Instagram on Monday (29 July), saying: “Joao Felix has departed Chelsea and signed a permanent deal with Al-Nassr. We thank Joao for his efforts across his two spells at the club and wish him well for the future.”
The Portuguese international was announced as a new signing by the Saudi Pro League side not long after, with an Instagram announcement that read: “‘I’m here to spread joy. Let’s win together.’ João Félix is Nassrawi,” with a writing emoji.
Their collaborative message was liked by Jackson, who could also be on his way out of Chelsea soon, while Pedro Neto replied with praying hands and a blue heart emoji, Renato Veiga added a heart-eyes emoji and the post was also liked by new teammate Cristiano Ronaldo, Diogo Dalot, Kieran Trippier and Fikayo Tomori.
Chelsea should sell Jackson after signing Pedro and Delap
Football Insider verdict
Chelsea impressed on numerous fronts last season with Jackson as their first-choice striker for the majority of the campaign, but his recent CWC antics that saw him sent off against Flamengo will have seen him go down in Maresca’s estimations.
Not only has he made a rod for his own back, but he has seen serious striker competition arrive at the club in Pedro and Delap, with both players impressing in the Blues’ triumphant tournament, and the former even scoring in the final against PSG.
| Appearances | Goals | Assists |
| 81 | 30 | 12 |
Neither of those two would have joined the West London outfit to play second-fiddle to the Senegalese international, and so it does look pretty likely that he departs, with Football Insider revealing on Friday (18 July) that Jackson is unhappy at Stamford Bridge right now.
It is clear that the Blues are not set to be short of suitors if they are happy to let him depart, with The Telegraph recently claiming that Newcastle and Juventus are both also interested in acquiring Jackson’s services.