Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino encouraged by Nicolas Jackson display on left flank
During the summer transfer window, Chelsea paid Villarreal in the region of £32m to secure a deal for the Senegal international, who quickly became recognised as the club's first-choice central forward.
Although Jackson has contributed nine goals and two assists in all competitions, the displays of the 22-year-old have divided opinion among the club's fanbase.
With Armando Broja having been loaned to Fulham, the expectation was that Jackson would resume in a central area against Aston Villa in Wednesday's FA Cup fourth-round replay.
Instead, he lined up on the left flank, consistently posing a threat from that area of the pitch and getting on the scoresheet with a coolly-taken header.
When quizzed on the performance of Jackson at a press conference on Friday, Pochettino hinted that he may look to use the versatile forward out wide on a regular basis.
The Argentine said: «Starting point was the left but football is dynamic and he has to move. I think he is a player that can play in this place.
»He always plays better when his face is towards the goal, rather than back to the goal. He is more comfortable, the pace, the speed, the capacity to arrive from the second line, he showed in the goal that he scored and how he arrive from the second line.
«So happy because the commitment is amazing, also. After arriving from the Africa Cup of Nations, I think it is important for him to recover and feel the net. I was very pleased with his performance.»
For the game against Villa, Cole Palmer and Conor Gallagher worked in tandem in the middle, with Noni Madueke bei
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