Mauricio Pochettino faces Chelsea transfer puzzle with Nicolas Jackson after West Ham heroics

Plenty has been said about Nicolas Jackson since moving to Chelsea last summer. And for the most part, it has been rival supporters mocking the striker.

Jackson, signed for £30million from Villarreal last summer, has missed 22 'big chances' this season with only Darwin Nunez of Liverpool (27) and Manchester City striker Erling Haaland (32) missing more in the Premier League. While the Senegalese forward will undoubtedly want to improve on that, the reality is he has netted 16 goals in all competitions in his debut season in a new country.

Mauricio Pochettino summed it up perfectly last month: "First season is always difficult for all the players, especially when you are a striker and need to perform and score goals. Everyone expects you to score a goal with every touch.

"He is our main striker, the only striker we have fit because [Christopher] Nkunku nearly didn't play the whole season, [Armando] Broja also then moved to Fulham because he wanted to play more. [Jackson] is doing fantastic.

"He is doing an amazing job for the team, running, scoring goals and giving assists. He is a young guy coming from Spain and he has done fantastic."

Players do find it difficult to adapt to a new country, culture and league – especially the Premier League – but Jackson's return is more than respectable. The 22-year-old now has 13 Premier League goals to his name after his double against West Ham United in the 5-0 rout of the Hammers at the weekend.

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His composure has let him down at times in front of goal. Jackson has been guilty of being too rash or perhaps making the wrong decision in the defining moments. That, though, is something that comes with experience and maturity – something that the whole Chelsea squad have been accused of lacking this season.

It was never the plan to use Jackson as the main No.9 this term, football.london understands. Christopher Nkunku's £52million arrival from RB Leipzig meant there should be options for Pochettino. While Nkunku can play anywhere across the front-line, he got a lot of his goals for Leipzig playing as the centre-forward.

Nkunku has played less than 400 minutes in all competitions for Chelsea this season due to a series of different injuries, meaning Jackson has had to step up, take the weight of the world on his shoulders and deliver. Granted, he has not always been able to do that but what he has been able to show is bags of potential and very raw, but equally ready-to-explode, talent.

Chelsea, though, will be in the market this summer for a new centre-forward, football.london understands. The likes of Victor Osimhen has been strongly linked but without the lure of Champions League football next season, it seems unlikely Chelsea will be able to persuade the highly sought-after Nigerian.

Ivan Toney is a name that refuses to go away. Toney looks set to leave Brentford this summer and the Bees will sell for the right price. Unfortunately for the Blues that figure is rumoured to be between the £80million and £100million-mark, though that price may cool - football.london understands that Arsenal are now targeting a younger profile of striker despite previous links.

Chelsea are likely to scour through the market and are understood to have a shortlist of names for potential striker targets. If any of them are brought in, then what does this mean for Jackson and his development at the club?

The last thing Chelsea want is a repeat of Armando Broja, who was not getting the minutes he was after and chose to move to Fulham on loan in January. If the Blues can qualify for some form of European football next season, which they are in a strong position to do currently, then there will be much more games for Pochettino to use his squad.

If Jackson is not the first-choice in the centre-forward position next season, then, if Chelsea do indeed qualify, he can be used more perhaps in Europe to try and compete for his place. Chelsea, though, cannot afford to scupper his development too much because there could be one hell of a player in there. He has shown that.