Does Jackson have a discipline problem?
- Published
"Stupid, stupid, stupid mistake"
That was how former Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel described Nicolas Jackson's red card against Flamengo in the Club World Cup on Friday night.
It took just four minutes from coming on as a late substitute for the striker to be walking back off the pitch after being sent off for a studs-up challenge.
It was the latest incident to lead to questions around Jackson's discipline.
The 24-year-old is now suspended in two competitions simultaneously having also been sent off in the Premier League in May in a then crucial game against Newcastle United.
Alongside his eight yellow cards, it means Jackson has a combined record of 10 cards across all competitions this season.
There were already question-marks around the Senegal forward's discipline when he first arrived in the last campaign after he picked up five bookings in his first six league games leading to an early suspension.
Many hoped he had put that behind him when he received just five more across the rest of the season.
But these latest incidents have once again left supporters and onlookers asking if this is a bigger problem.
Since his arrival from Villarreal in 2023, Jackson has the joint-most red cards among Chelsea players alongside Reece James.
While he does not come out on top for total yellow cards or combined cards (fourth and third respectively), it is worth noting who the other players are that are above him.
Moises Caicedo leads the way with 28 bookings, but as a defensive midfielder, yellow cards come with the territory.
It is a similar story with Marc Cucurella and Enzo Fernandez, as defenders and midfielders it is almost expected that you will pick up these cards as you try and stop attacks and break up play.
While you do not want your striker up front to be a pushover, you do want them to be clever in how they hold up the ball and battle with the opposition's defence.
The timing of Jackson's latest suspensions also means he is giving new arrival Liam Delap a free hit in the central striker role for Chelsea.
And although the latest Blues recruit is not exactly squeaky clean on the pitch himself - with 14, Delap picked up more yellow cards than Jackson last term - he has yet to be sent off in his senior football career.
But is a striker playing on the edge always a problem?
Former Blues forward Diego Costa had a notoriously fiery persona and picked up 30 yellow cards across his three seasons in west London - although, perhaps somewhat surprisingly, just the one red card.
Club legend Didier Drogba could also walk the discipline tightrope and notched up a combined 64 cards across 381 appearances for Chelsea.
However, with the contributions they offered in front of goal, it felt very much part of their game and helped them provide what they did on the pitch - an area supporters are yet to be convinced of with Jackson.
How concerning is Jackson's latest sending off? Can it be accepted as part of his game? Or does he need to change the way he plays?
