Chelsea lost to Wolverhampton 1-2 in the 18th round of the 2023-24 English Premier League (PL) held at Molineux Stadium in Wolverhampton, England, at 10 p.m. on the 24th. Chelsea ranks 10th in the league with six wins, four draws and eight losses (22 points), and Wolverhampton ranks 11th in the league with six wins, four draws and eight losses (22 points).
Mauricio Pochettino chose Jackson and Armando Broya two-top in the absence of Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo. Broya was located in front, Jackson moved more, supporting Raheem Sterling and Cole Palmer. Sterling and Conor Gallagher created many opportunities as they struggled, but Jackson missed each time.
He displayed poor touch. Despite successive good passes, Jackson missed all of them, throwing away a chance to take the lead. Chelsea fans covered their heads when they saw them struggling without even being able to shoot. Chelsea collapsed. Mario Lemina lost a point at six minutes into the second half and allowed him to take the lead. Pochettino replaced Jackson with Broja and deployed Christoph Nkunku, Mykhailo Mudryk, and Noni Madueke to reinforce his offense.
Matt Doherty lost a point to make it 0-2. Nkunku avoided losing the first place when he scored his debut goal for Chelsea, but lost the game. Chelsea has lost four games and is still in the 10th place. The rankings where tickets to the UEFA Championship are given, let alone the top four, are moving away. Criticism against Pochettino is mounting against players who are below par.
The biggest problem lies at the forefront. Broja is also sluggish, but Jackson is in a very serious level. Jackson from Villarreal has raised expectations, calling himself the “second Didier Drogba,” and is currently the worst player. He has scored as many as seven goals. It is the same as Victor Osimhen, whom Chelsea strongly want, scored in the league for Napoli, but if you look closely, the purity is very poor.
Of the seven goals, three were made in a match against Tottenham Hotspur in which nine players fought. He scored important goals in the matches against Brighton and Sheffield United, and shook the net against Manchester City, but he is cutting off the flow of Chelsea’s attacks due to many big chance misses and inaccurate touch and connection passes. This is why he is criticized for scoring seven goals.
There are also many warnings. Soccer statistics magazine “Squarka” reported that Jackson received eight yellow cards and became the player who received the most warnings this season. Most of the players on the same rank as Jackson were either defensive midfielders or center backs. It is unusual for a striker to receive the most warnings. Jackson has been branded as a player who receives many warnings despite his poor performance.
In an interview after the game, Pochettino defended Jackson. “Compared Jackson to strikers who joined a new league at that age, he has good scoring and performance. He is young and new to PL. I have high expectations. It may be right to criticize everyone, but you can’t criticize a single player.” Despite Pochettino’s defense, skepticism continues toward Jackson.
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