Sports
Fabrizio Romano says 24-year-old has now played his last game for Chelsea
Fabrizio Romano has shared some transfer news out of Stamford Bridge as Chelsea prepare for what will be an interesting 2026.
On the pitch, Chelsea have just suffered a damaging 3-1 defeat to relegation-threatened Leeds United, losing further ground on Premier League leaders Arsenal.
It was a performance that raised serious questions about their title aspirations, but for the home side, it was Leeds’ best showing of the season to date.
Daniel Farke’s relegation-battlers raced into an early lead when Jaka Bijol powered home a header from Anton Stach’s corner after just six minutes. The Slovenian defender’s first goal for the club set the tone for a dominant display from the hosts.
Leeds doubled their advantage before the interval through Ao Tanaka’s spectacular long-range effort, leaving Chelsea stunned as they headed into halftime two goals down.
Chelsea had managed virtually nothing in attack during the opening 45 minutes, struggling to break down Leeds’ disciplined defensive shape.
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Pedro Neto offered brief hope when he netted shortly after the restart, but any thoughts of a comeback were extinguished when Dominic Calvert-Lewin capitalized on Tosin Adarabioyo’s defensive error to restore the two-goal cushion midway through the second half.
Despite controlling nearly three-quarters of possession, Chelsea looked toothless in attack and desperately missed the suspended Moises Caicedo in midfield.
Cole Palmer’s return from a lengthy injury layoff failed to spark Enzo Maresca‘s side into life as Leeds held firm to secure a vital three points, with defenders Tosin and Benoit Badiashile also having a night to forget at Elland Road.
|
Tosin vs Leeds |
|
|---|---|
|
Stat |
Record |
|
Minutes |
90 |
|
Touches |
119 |
|
Pass accuracy |
91% |
|
Possession lost |
10 |
|
Key passes |
0 |
|
Aerial duels won |
8/10 |
|
Ground duels won |
1/4 |
|
Dribbled past |
1 |
|
Error leading to goal |
1 |
The defeat leaves Maresca’s men trailing Arsenal by nine points and facing renewed scrutiny after impressive recent results against Barcelona and the Gunners had elevated expectations.
Chelsea now sit fourth in the table with their title challenge appearing increasingly unrealistic.
Away from the pitch, BlueCo are continuing their transfer strategy of signing world football’s most elite young talent by the dozen.
Talks have recently been held with Red Bull Salzburg sensation Johannes Moser, but he reportedly won’t be joining the likes of Geovany Quenda, Dastan Satpaev, Denner, Emmanuel Emegha and Deinner Ordonez as incoming young arrivals.
To make room for this plethora of new talent, Chelsea have some selling to do, with Nicolas Jackson poised to join ‘bomb squad’ members Raheem Sterling and Axel Disasi out of the door permanently.
Nicolas Jackson has already played his last game for Chelsea
The Senegalese is currently on loan at Bayern Munich, but reports suggest that it is unlikely the Bavarians will take up their buy option to sign Jackson, with their obligation conditions now thought to be out of reach.
As a result, the 24-year-old appears set to return to London next year before Chelsea attempt to find him another buyer.
For those wondering if there is any way back for Jackson at Chelsea, Romano has provided the answer, and it is a resounding no.
“It might be in England, Aston Villa, Bayern, of course. Let’s see what they decide to do for Jackson. There will be a lot of interest. But at the moment, what I can guarantee Aston Villa wanted him last summer,” Romano said on his YouTube channel. “That’s why I mentioned Aston Villa. Unai Emery knows the player well from Villarreal. But what I want to tell you is that between Jackson and Chelsea, the story is considered over.”
Jackson, by all accounts, hasn’t actually had a bad season at Bayern.
The striker, despite playing second fiddle to Harry Kane, has bagged three goals in his last four Bundesliga outings, not to mention two in the Champions League against Paphos and Club Brugge respectively.
It is interesting to note that Romano hasn’t definitively ruled out a permanent Bayern switch for Jackson, who could well decide to reopen talks with Chelsea about a more favourable long-term deal.
