After injury to Nicolas Jackson, the Blues may turn to former striker as a free agent as they’re facing injury crisis.
Nicolas Jackson out until April
Chelsea are now in big attacker crisis after recent injury to Jackson. As per reports, the forward will be ruled out for at least until April.
The 2024/2025 campaign will be nearing a close by the time he returns. He will take time to recover, training and then he will be back on the field. This will take so much time. He won’t be able to have much game time to play in this season.
The Blues are also missing Marc Guiu due to injury. He will also expected to be out for the similar amount of time as Nicolas.
Although, the club seems confident in their available options to cover Jackson and Guiu. But if we look carefully, there aren’t any actual options for them if looking for a proper no.9.
Christopher Nkunku is a number 10. And he has had much impact while playing as a number 9. Cole Palmer is an attacking midfielder too and won’t be able to perform at his best at the front. He is the best at his position for them.
Nicolas Jackson to be replaced by Diego Costa?
Diego Costa has clearly revealed his feelings whenever he’s asked about a return to the Premier League.
Costa has been part of the Blues in the past. And he has spent almost four-and-a-half years at the club. He played his recent football at the Brazilian club, Gremio. His contract with Gremio came to an end in January this year. And now he is a free agent.
Although the transfer window is shut, but he can be an option for various other sides in England. Many English sides are desperately looking for attacking options. Chelsea and Arsenal being the ones to name a few.
The West London club’s are aware of the fact that former attacker Diego Costa is a free agent. And the fans also think that maybe it is time to make his return to the Stamford Bridge possible.
The 36-year-old is nowhere near the poacher he was in front of the goal at his time at Chelsea. But he will surely have some part to play in these desperate times.
They could bring him for a short-term. Signing him for the rest of the season could work for both the parties.
The Blues can give a chance to him as he is a proper 9. And they’re out of players in that particular position. In fact, Costa is the last successful proper number 9 the club has seen since his exit in 2017.
Enzo Maresca on Nkunku: “He is not a nine”
The manager had spoken to the reporters ahead of their math at the Amex Stadium about Christopher Nkunku. Enzo Maresca said that Nkunku is an attacking midfielder and not a striker.
He said: “I’ve said since day one that Christo is not a nine.
“Christo is an attacking midfielder. We use him as a nine to find a solution, but we know very well that Christo is not a proper nine.
“Christo can be one of the solutions, but he’s not the only solution. We will try to find different solutions.
“I’ve said it many times, I consider Christo a very important player since we started. The problem is they think they are only important if they play. If they don’t play, they don’t feel like they are important. Now, also, with the transfer window closed, everyone is here. He can try and help us until the end.”
Author’s Opinion
Diego Costa’s return to the Stamford Bridge will be a wild event.
However, manager Maresca recently cleared that they are not trying to sign any free agent currently. They’ll not be looking for short term options. Instead they are focused on finding solutions with the available players in the squad.
The time will tell if the Blues’ boss manages to handle the injury crisis efficiently.
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