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Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca has opened up on the Blues' plans regarding signing a new striker in the summer. The Blues' boss has claimed that his perfect striker signing would be another Nicolas Jackson.
Maresca has insisted that Chelsea play a lot better with Jackson in the team and claimed that he misses the Senegal international. He said, as quoted by the Standard:
“My perfect No9 is exactly Nico Jackson. We already have a No9. It's not summer now. If we can have a copy of Nico, it's OK. I have said many times, with Nico we are a better team. Nico is the one we need."
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“Last season, he scored goals without penalties. This season he scored goals until he was injured. Now, hopefully, he can score more goals without penalties. We are happy with Nico. And about next season, it's not the moment [to discuss transfers]," Maresca added.
Chelsea will take on Ipswich Town in the Premier League on Sunday, April 13 and will be up against Liam Delap. The England international has been heavily linked with a move to Stamford Bridge in recent weeks.
Maresca has heaped praise on Delap but insisted that it is too early to compare him with the likes of Harry Kane and Erling Haaland. The Italian manager said:
“In terms of numbers, he's doing fantastic. I think he's scored 12 [Premier League] goals already. It's not just in terms of his numbers — [it’s] the way he plays and fights and is always there. But he's an Ipswich player. He's an enemy on Sunday because we need to beat them, and then after the game I wish him all the best for the future."
"In the first game, he was quite good for them. We need to deal with that, and we need to do much, much better compared to the first game [the loss at Ipswich]. To compare Liam [Delap] with Harry Kane and Erling Haaland, I think it's a bit early. But for sure, in terms of style, he's that kind of player. They are all real 9s. They are 9s inside the box," Maresca added.
Maresca added:
“But we also have a good 9 [in Nico Jackson]. He's doing well since we started. Unfortunately, we've missed him, and sometimes you need to miss players to realise how important they are for you. With Nico, we are a completely different team compared to when he was injured. We are happy with Nico as our striker.”
Nicolas Jackson has scored nine goals and provided five assists in 26 appearances this season. He has missed nine games with a hamstring injury this season.
Meanwhile, Liam Delap has been revelation since joining Ipswich Town in the summer from Manchester City. He has scored 12 goals and produced two assists in 33 appearances across competitions this season.
Chelsea set to hold talks with 30-year-old star ahead of potential summer decision
Chelsea are reportedly set to hold talks with goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga in the summer regarding his future at the club. The Spanish keeper is enjoying a solid season with Bournemouth on loan this time out and wants clarity over his future.
The 30-year-old has admitted that he is happy with his loan spell with the Cherries this campaign. However, he insisted that he remains a Chelsea player and will hold talks with the Blues in the summer regarding his future. He said, as quoted by GOAL:
"Obviously what I can say is that I'm really happy and I'm enjoying my playing time here. I think I'm showing that and I'm feeling well on the pitch. It's not the time to think about the future, we're going to take the decision, we're in touch with everybody and now I'm under contract with Chelsea. We have some conversations to have, they will happen in the next few weeks and then we'll decide."
Kepa became the most expensive keeper of all time when he joined Chelsea in the summer of 2018 from Athletic Bilbao. However, the Spaniard has not been able to live up to his massive £72 million price tag at Stamford Bridge.
While Kepa has won one Champions League and one Europa League with the Blues, he established himself as an error-prone keeper. He spent the last season on loan at Real Madrid to deputized for injured Thibaut Courtois but fell behind Andriy Lunin in the pecking order.
