The moment of madness from Nicolas Jackson in Chelsea’s Club World Cup defeat to Flamengo on Friday may have handed the Blues a huge transfer boost. With his side trailing 2-1 to the Brazilian team, the Senegalese striker was sent on and made an immediate impact.
Not the kind of impact Enzo Maresca was hoping for, though. Just four minutes after being introduced, he was red-carded for a studs-up challenge on Ayrton Lucas. He’s since apologised to his club on social media, but his second dismissal in four games for the Blues has fuelled speculation that Maresca has lost patience with the £30million signing from Villarreal.
According to Sky Italy, Juventus are now looking to capitalise on the situation. The Serie A side has reportedly already made contact with the Blues over the possibility of signing Jackson, who scored 13 times last season, for a £32m fee.
However, rather than accept a straight bid, the Premier League side can now use Jackson as a bargaining tool in their pursuit of Juve man Dusan Vlahovic. The Serbian star, who had 56 goals in 144 games for the Italian giants, has been linked with a host of big European clubs.
One of those is Chelsea. Vlahovic joined Juventus in a £70m deal from Fiorentina in 2021, but with just a year left on his contract, the Old Lady must now face selling him for a lesser fee or risk losing him for nothing next summer.
The Premier League club now has a golden opportunity to negotiate a swap deal, which would offset a large portion of the money needed to sign Vlahovic and help the club comply with FFP regulations.
Juventus have voiced their intent to tie their key man down on a long-term contract, but are said to be reluctant to meet his wage demands of £200,000-a-week. Chelsea are better placed financially to match that figure, especially if Jackson, who is said to be on 100k-a-week, comes off their books.
Maresca has already brought one forward to the club this summer in ex-Ipswich man Liam Delap. However, with Christopher Nkunku also expected to leave, the Italian wants firepower in his squad after sealing a return to the Champions League.
Jackson’s ill-discipline on Friday was maligned by club fans, with Chelsea now facing a crunch clash with African side ES Tunis on Wednesday. However, his apparent head loss may now prove a positive turning point come the 2025/26 campaign.
