Xabi Alonso faces a host of critical decisions to make when he officially becomes Chelsea manager next month before he gets his debut season underway in August
While Nicolas Jackson will be giving every ounce of his energy on helping Senegal progress in the World Cup, there must be something at the back of the Chelsea striker’s mind thinking about where his future lies.
Towards the end of last month, football.london brought you the news that the Blues will welcome Jackson back to Stamford Bridge this summer with open arms ahead of a big decision. The man making said decision: Xabi Alonso.
The incoming Chelsea manager will keep a close eye on the Senegal international when he meets up with the squad for their pre-season tour next month. Jackson spent last season on loan at Bayern Munich and while Vincent Kompany was impressed with the 24-year-old attacker during his brief time at the Allianz Arena, the club chose not to trigger the £56million permanent clause inserted in his contract.
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While Alonso will not get to work with Jackson until late-July (at the very earliest), the Spaniard will no doubt be keeping tabs on the striker’s performances at the ongoing World Cup. His first performance, bar scoring a goal, could not have been much better.
Senegal can count themselves unfortunate to be beaten by France in their Group I opener on Tuesday evening. The Africans were the better side in the first half and were made to rue several missed chances – including a great effort from Jackson that hit the post – with France a much better proposition in the second period at the New York New Jersey Stadium.
That, ironically, is the venue where Jackson made his most recent appearance for Chelsea – coming on for the final 30 minutes in the Club World Cup semi-final victory over Fluminense just less than 12 months ago. Jackson was part of Enzo Maresca ‘s squad for the final – at the same stadium – against Paris Saint-Germain, but did not get on in the 3-0 win.
Jackson and Maresca later were involved in a row, sources say, and that forced the striker to look for a new home. In Munich, he found a temporary home but this summer, his future is once again uncertain. football.london sources say Jackson himself is yet to make a final decision on where he will be playing his football come August but he is open to the possibility of returning to Stamford Bridge.
Alonso would surely have been impressed with what he saw from Jackson, who was an absolute nuisance for France centre-back duo William Saliba and Dayot Upamecano on Tuesday evening. The Senegal striker has proved to be a little over the line with his application at times, and his recent red card record backs that up, but when he finds the right balance between being a menace and overstepping the mark, he is a joy to watch.
He got that balance spot on in Senegal’s defeat to Les Bleus, the 2022 runners-up. As mentioned, he hit the post in the first half with a great strike and French goalkeeper Mike Maignan would have breathed a huge sigh of relief to see the ball bounce off his back for a corner rather than in his own goal.
Jackson had opportunities in the second period, too, not least his disallowed goal. The Chelsea striker did stray into an offside position, so the correct call was made, but his strike of the ball into the top corner was a sight to behold. It’s no exaggeration to say that would have been one of the goals of the tournament had he been a couple of yards further back.
Unfortunately for Senegal and Jackson, it was France’s time to shine in New Jersey. Kylian Mbappe, predictably, and like he has done on countless occasions in previous World Cups, stole the show in a thrilling second half on Tuesday night. Mbappe was poor in the first half but performed somewhat of a U-turn when coming out for the second period in New Jersey; scoring twice for the 2018 world champions.
As for Alonso, if he was watching, he got to see everything good about Jackson during his 83 minutes on the pitch. Tireless running out of possession, persistence in his duels and a deadly finish (yes, the goal didn’t count). The new Chelsea boss will have also seen the missed chance in the second half after a wonderful cross from West Ham United left-back El Hadji Malick Diouf, where Jackson was too tentative when the ball arrived at his feet inside the box.
The overall performance from Jackson was a really positive one; if this was the first stage of an audition, as such, for Alonso to judge, then surely he would have passed with flying colours.
