Mauricio Pochettino has now revealed that he is showing Nicolas Jackson videos of two Chelsea legends and Brentford ace Ivan Toney to try and fix the forward’s form.
The 22-year-old has had promising moments during his debut season at Stamford Bridge so far this term. But Jackson is without a goal in the Premier League since December 16, when he took his tally to seven. He has played in six fixtures since scoring against Sheffield United.
Jackson has added two of his three assists across 22 English top-flight outings since he last found the back of a net. The Senegal star has further scored twice in the FA Cup with strikes against Aston Villa and Leeds United. But Pochettino believes there is more to come for him.
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Jackson reached 10 Chelsea goals in the FA Cup vs Leeds
Chelsea progressed through the fifth round of the FA Cup on Wednesday night after Jackson initially drew them level at 1-1 against Leeds. He fired home on 15 minutes to ensure Leeds only led for seven minutes. While Conor Gallagher would secure them a 3-2 win in the 90th.
Scoring against the Championship title chasers also took Jackson to 10 goals in 29 games in all competitions for Chelsea. He moved to west London in June after the Blues paid £32m to Villarreal. They spent above his release clause to secure more favourable payment terms.
Pochettino uses Toney and two Chelsea icons to help Jackson
Jackson hitting double digits is not enough for Pochettino, though, as the Chelsea boss feels more is still achievable. The Argentine also now admits that he is showing the striker videos of Brentford rival Toney plus Chelsea legends in Didier Drogba and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink.
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“Jackson loves to watch different strikers and learn,” Pochettino said, via the Express. “He is very humble to listen and to accept when we show him different strikers, or when we try to advise him on the game.
“Toney is a great striker: an experienced player, with experience of the Premier League. Now, of course, Jackson is doing well but he is learning. Which strikers do we show him? I think all the strikers in the Premier League are good for him to see.
“And maybe I am showing my age but also [Gabriel] Batistuta, Drogba – experienced players, amazing players, big players – Hasselbaink. You can learn from them, always.”
Hasselbaink joined Chelsea from Atletico Madrid for £15m in May 2000 and scored 87 times in 177 games, including 69 in 136 Premier League matches. Drogba joined from Marseille for £24m in July 2004 and scored 157 goals in 341 games, including 100 in 226 in the top-flight.
Toney, meanwhile, only broke out in the Premier League after he helped Brentford to secure promotion in 2021. The 27-year-old had featured twice for 10 minutes with Newcastle back in 2015/16. But he has 36 goals and nine assists in 73 top-flight games for the Bees so far.
