xG stats and new signings mean Nicolas Jackson has serious new competition up front | OneFootball

Liam Twomey of the Athletic has just done a deep dive on Nicolas Jackson and Christopher Nkunku, with some really interesting thoughts on what could end up being a battle between the two players to be first choice striker.

It has a lot of similar thoughts to a piece we wrote yesterday considering how Enzo Maresca might end up finding a way to use Nkunku with his new friend Jadon Sancho – and whether that necessarily costs Jackson his place.

Nkunku’s versatility has so far seen him deployed deeper, but if there’s nowhere else to squeeze him in and Maresca likes the idea of a false 9 type striker, we could well see him competing openly with Jackson.

Christopher Nkunku celebrates a goal. (Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS / AFP)

Nkunku and Jackson provide very different solutions to the same problem

There are a few very interesting stats that Twomey pulls out when assessing the two of them.

Most basically of all, he notes that Nkunku featured “more than anyone else” in Maresca’s preseason squad. After a year spent mostly on the sidelines, this felt like a clue that Nkunku was going to be a guarantees starter – but not so.

Pedro Neto, Joao Felix and Jadon Sancho all arrived late in the window to make things very crowded in attacking midfield, while Jackson was firmly established as number 9.

Another key but simple stat is that Jackson scored 14 non-penalty goals in his first Chelsea season, a great return. But his finishing stats aren’t pretty despite that: he scored 4.6 xG fewer than expected last year, while Nkunku scored 5.4 MORE than expected across his final two seasons at RB Leipzig.

The article drills a lot deeper into the whole question, but the conclusion is the same one we’ve come to – with so much talent competing a little deeper, Nkunku is set on something of a collision course with Jackson for minutes – and hopefully that drives them both on to succeed.

Top image: Nicolas Jackson plays Crystal Palace. (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)