Claudio Echeverri is certain about not renewing his contract with River Plate
According to Mauricio Pochettino, he could play Christopher Nkunku and Nicolas Jackson in Chelsea’s next pre-season match, as both have acted as each other’s back-up in the last two games in the central forward position.
Nkunku and Jackson are yet to play together, but both have received a reasonable amount of game time and have also shown their worth in those two matches.
In their 5-0 win over Wrexham, Jackson was in the starting lineup but was later replaced by Nkunku after 46 minutes. In their 4-3 win over Brighton & Hove Albion yesterday, the former RB Leipzig player was replaced by Jackson with 63 minutes on the clock.
Both have alternated in the number nine role due to a shortage of strikers, as Armando Broja is still recovering from injury and didn’t travel with the squad to the USA.
However, after their Brighton game, Pochettino was questioned if both could start together in the next matches. (h/t BBC), The Argentine manager said:
“For sure, we will arrive in the next few games at the possibility of playing them together. The circumstances of the physical condition mean we need to use both to share the minutes.”
Both Nkunku and Jackson performed admirably in the previous two games. Nkunku scored two goals in those contests, while the former Villarreal striker also contributed two assists and a goal during that time. While the Senegalese is a traditional no. 9, Nkunku is versatile and can also play behind a striker.
With just Broja and Jackson remaining as pure strikers for the upcoming season, our alternatives at No. 9 are limited. This is a pre-season which will be important for Poch. It will give him an idea about what he wants to do next season. If he has one plan in mind right now, it could change or be modified by what he sees in the three games that are left in the USA.
Chelsea will take on Newcastle United on 27 July, Fulham on 30 July and Borussia Dortmund on 3 August to conclude their pre-season tour of the USA. The season begins on 13 August with a Premier League game against Liverpool.
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