John Obi Mikel has revealed that he believes Chelsea striker Nicholas Jackson is currently the only player who can stop the Blues from winning trophies. The former midfielder joined as a 19-year-old in 2006 and spent 11 years at Stamford Bridge until 2017. He made 372 appearances during his time at Chelsea, helping the club bring home 11 different trophies. This includes two Premier League titles and the Champions League trophy.
He was at Stamford Bridge during one of the most successful periods in the Blues’ history. The situation is very different now, and they have not been close to first place in the English top flight since 2017. There was a major overhaul and some very tough campaigns. They have shown great signs of improvement this season, but according to Mikel they are still not good enough to win trophies and the blame lies with one man.
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Mikel doesn’t think Jackson scores enough goals
He believes relying on strikers is stopping Chelsea from winning silver medals
Earlier this season, it looked like Chelsea would be the team to push Liverpool towards the Premier League title. However, Enzo Maresca’s side have suffered a dip in form in recent weeks, dropping important points. According to Mikel, they are currently out of the title race and that won’t change until they resolve their issues up front. Speaking on the latest episode of his podcast, The Obi Wan Podcast, via a quote from Metro, he revealed as much, saying:
“We don’t have enough clinical ability. He doesn’t score enough goals. He puts himself in the right positions but he doesn’t finish and he doesn’t score enough. He’s not the striker that’s going to take us to the top four or win the Premier League title, he’s not that striker, but I don’t think he can cross the line in terms of winning trophies.
“For me, he is a player who can connect the play, he is good on the ball, but he doesn’t score enough goals.If we had Victor Osimhen, the guy from Sporting, Victor Gökeres, I don’t think he would be able to do it. I hope we can still compete.” Nicolas has yet to score a goal in the Premier League. (Jackson’s) goals aren’t enough, so he needs to find a way. You talk about top, top strikers, but look at (Alexander) Isak at Newcastle, he’s flying, that’s what we need. ”
Chelsea believe it will be difficult to replace Didier Drogba. The former striker was the team’s talismanic forward for years, but since his departure in 2012, the team has struggled to replace him in goal. Diego Costa appeared to be his successor, but his spell at Stamford Bridge ended prematurely. According to Mikel, Jackson, who has scored 26 goals in 64 appearances for Chelsea, is also not the answer. This is not the first time the former midfielder has criticized Jackson.
All statistics provided by Transfermarkt and accurate as of July 1, 2025.
