Glenn Hoddle says Nicolas Jackson ‘isn’t playing with confidence’ in front of goal as Chelsea recorded a valuable point at Manchester City on Saturday.
That was very much a point gained by Chelsea at the Etihad, despite the away side opening the scoring through Raheem Sterling and Rodri scoring late on.
Before the match, many thought Mauricio Pochettino and his players were facing, not just a defeat, but a heavy loss against the Treble winners.
But it could have been very different for Chelsea, especially if Nicolas Jackson had his shooting boots because he missed a guilt-edge chance in the first half.
After being fed a brilliant ball by Cole Palmer, rather than go for a first-time finish, he opted to take an extra touch and it then resulted in Ederson not even being tested in between the sticks, with Glenn Hoddle questioning ‘why on earth’ he would do that, as he told Premier League Productions (17/02/24 at 6:25 pm).
Rather than playing dead through the middle, Chelsea are using their £30 million signing out on the flanks, a role he deployed at Villarreal.
Yes, that has taken the goalscoring pressure off his shoulders, but it still hasn’t stopped Nicolas Jackson from missing big chances.
Nicolas Jackson in front of goal for Chelsea
“Again, it’s Palmer with a lovely little ball down that left side of Manchester City,” said Hoddle.
“But I don’t know why Jackson hasn’t hit it first time. Why on earth hasn’t he put this in? This is the lack of confidence Jackson has got in front of goal by needing a touch.
“When you are playing well and confident at scoring goals as a striker, then that’s a first-time strike and it’s into the back of the net. He is thinking too much. He had a lot of time to think about that and it was an awful effort.”
Chelsea in the final third
If Chelsea had a proven number nine at the Etihad, then many would argue that they would have walked away with three points.
Yes, the London club have had their moments this season and the pressure is still on Pochettino, especially with the League Cup final coming up.
This young side are showing promise, their build-up play is very strong and they were defensively outstanding at Manchester City and Aston Villa recently.
But it’s that final third that is killing them the most and it’s a big reason why they aren’t in a European place.
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