Jackson has had a hand in 23 goals across his last 29 Premier League starts for Chelsea (16 goals, seven assists), including 11 goal involvements in his last 10 starts (eight goals, three assists).

After the win he said his confidence was “growing higher” with his team-mates and “they have confidence” in him.

Since the start of 2023-24, Jackson and Chelsea team-mate Cole Palmer have combined for 10 Premier League goals – at least two more than any other duo in the English top flight.

“Everybody knows he (Jackson) is a top player. The Chelsea fans and players rate him highly – we know what he is capable of,” Palmer told TNT Sports.

Equally optimistically for Chelsea fans was the early signs of a rapport on the pitch between Jackson and new signing Jadon Sancho, who combined well for the first goal against the Hammers.

It was his second goal, though, that caught the eye of former Chelsea striker Demba Ba who said on X that Jackson gave a “masterclass on creating space”.

“How he gets the defender out of position and gets in there is top level,” added compatriot Ba. “Even better than the finishing itself.”

Former Chelsea and West Ham midfielder Joe Cole said Jackson was still “learning his trade” as a “younger man and a young player” after he compared his start at Stamford Bridge to one of the club’s legendary Premier League players.

“People talked about Didier Drogba’s first two seasons when he wasn’t as prolific as he later became. Nevertheless, he [Jackson] has scored the goals and he will get better,” Cole told TNT Sports.

“He needs to just keep improving, be a bit more composed and [gain] more confidence. He will bounce into the next game now.”

Fulham manager Marco Silva says his side ‘”deserved” to win 3-1 against Newcastle United which ended their unbeaten start to the Premier League at Craven Cottage.

READ MORE: Newcastle miss chance to go top with defeat at Fulham

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The UFC is beginning to schedule fights for its December pay-per-view event, including matching up Anthony Smith and Dominick Reyes.

At UFC 310 on Dec. 7 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, former light heavyweight title challengers Smith (37-20 MMA, 13-10 UFC) and Reyes (13-4 MMA, 7-4 UFC) are set to face off.

UFC officials announced the bout Saturday following an initial report from MMA Mania’s Alex Behunin in August.

You’ll want to grab your popcorn for this one 🍿

Anthony Smith vs @DomReyes

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[ #UFC310 LIVE on @ESPNPlus PPV | DEC 10 | 10pmET/7pmPT ] pic.twitter.com/OHRctBuZW9

— UFC (@ufc) September 21, 2024

Smith, currently No. 12 in the promotion’s divisional rankings, will look to rebound from a loss to Roman Dolidze at UFC 303 in June, which continued a recent trend of trading wins and losses. Smith’s last win came in the fight prior at UFC 301, where he scored MMA Junkie’s Submission of the Month for May against Vitor Petrino in just two minutes.

Reyes, currently ranked No. 14, will aim to keep his momentum going following a two-minute victory of his own. In his first fight since November 2022, Reyes returned to action and quickly finished Dustin Jacoby in the first round at UFC on ESPN 57. Not only was the result a successful return after a lengthy layoff, the win snapped a four-fight skid that stretched back to his controversial title challenge loss vs. Jon Jones at UFC 247 in 2020.

The latest UFC 310 lineup now includes:

• Dominick Reyes vs. Anthony Smith
• Virna Jandiroba vs. Tatiana Suarez

Exeter: Hodge; Feyi-Waboso, Hammersley, Hawkins, Woodburn; Skinner, Armstrong; Sio (capt), Frost, Painter, Tuima, Capstick, Roots, Vintcent, Fisilau.

Replacements: Yeandle, Goodrick-Clarke, Iosefa-Scott, Dunne, Tshiunza, Cairns, Haydon-Wood, Brown-Bampoe.

Yellow card: Haydon-Wood (79)

Leicester: Steward; Bassett, Perese, Kata, Hassell-Collin; Shillcock, Van Poortvliet; Smith, Clare, Heyes, Well, Chessum (capt), Liebenberg, Cracknell, Hatherell.

Replacements: Theobald-Thomas, Cronin, Cole, Joussain, Reffell, Youngs, Volavola, Kelly.

Yellow card: Perese (28)

Red card: Kata (71)

Referee: Tom Foley

Daniel Cormier does not believe Tom Aspinall is really the backup fighter for UFC 309.

At UFC 309, Jon Jones defends his heavyweight title against Stipe Miocic in a fight well over a year in the making, and earlier this week, UFC CEO Dana White declared interim champion Tom Aspinall is the backup fighter for the bout. But despite White’s assurances, some doubt remains about whether Aspinall would actually step in should something happen to either Jones or Aspinall, and UFC Hall of Famer Daniel Cormier is one of the doubters.

“You’re gullible,” Cormier told co-host Chael Sonnen on their Good Guy/Bad Guy show when Sonnen said both Jones and Miocic agreed to fight Aspinall at UFC 309. “No, it does not mean that! What it means is now we have another opportunity for disappointment…

“If one of those dudes gets hurt, neither one of them is fighting Tom Aspinall. You’re out of your mind. No way. When Jon Jones got hurt the first time, Sergei Pavlovich was the backup fighter. Who fought?! If somebody gets hurt, get ready for Tom Aspinall vs. Ciryl Gane. Mark my words.”

As Cormier noted, this would not be the first time a backup fighter was passed over for a title shot, and not even the first time it happened with this particular matchup. Jones and Miocic were supposed to fight a year ago at UFC 295 when Jones sustained an injury and withdrew from the contest. Instead of having then-backup fighter Sergei Pavlovich step in against Miocic, the UFC opted to delay the Jones-Miocic fight and Aspinall stepped in on short notice to fight Pavlovich in an interim bout.

That, plus other instances of backup fighters not even having the opportunity to fulfill their role, makes Cormier doubtful about Aspinall’s chances to fight for a unified title at UFC 309.

“I don’t get the backup fighter,” Cormier said. “Remember when Charles Oliveira was going to fight against Islam Makhachev and Mateusz Gamrot was the backup fighter and then they brought Alexander Volkanovski in there? I get that you want to look at this thing with clear eyes, but I’m giving you two prime examples.

It’s not even about being scared. It’s about risk management. If someone gets hurt in this fight, the reward vs. the risk of fighting Tom Aspinall is so great, I don’t believe that either of them will do it. Love that it’s a part of the story now. We all love the story. We love a great story. But I don’t know that it plays.”

Contributing to the doubt around Aspinall’s role is the fact that this fight is believed to be the final bout for both Jones and Miocic. Dana White previously said as much for Miocic, while Jones recently stated this would “more than likely” be it for his career. And for Cormier, that decision isn’t based on fear of Aspinall, but basic career calculus.

“I don’t think he’s scared, but again, it’s risk vs. reward…” Cormier said. “A win over Tom Aspinall does nothing more for Jon Jones than a win over me or Vitor Belfort or Rashad Evans or Shogun Rua or Alexander Gustafsson, and all this list of great fighters he’s already beaten. So many great fighters. Beating Tom Aspinall doesn’t really do much to add to that. But losing to Tom Aspinall does do something, because now you see him lose. He’s never lost… So for him to go out there and fight a young, hungry guy who seems to possess the skills to beat him, it’s not worth the risk.

“I’m telling you this as a guy that for a long time was one the wrong side of the Jon Jones equation, didn’t like Jon Jones, didn’t care for him: I don’t think that you risk [what he would be risking]… His legacy to him, I feel, might mean more than taking that risk, especially when you don’t need to.”

Cormier has extensive history with both Jones and Miocic, having fought the two of them a combined five times; however, his rivalry with Jones is the defining one of both their careers. Given that, Cormier knows a thing or two about Jones, and believes there is only one real way fans see Jones fight Aspinall.

“Jon Jones vs. Tom Aspinall is more likely to happen if Stipe Miocic wins,” Cormier said. “That’s my take… If Stipe wins and Jones loses and feels like he has something to prove, it’s more likely that he fights Tom Aspinall. If he wins, he’ll go off into the sunset.”

UFC 309 takes place on Nov. 16 at Madison Square Garden in New York City.