Chelsea striker Nicolas Jackson has overtaken club legend Didier Drogba for Premier League goals scored in his debut season.
The Senegal international was on target as Mauricio Pochettino’s side saw off Tottenham at Stamford Bridge on Thursday to register a league double over their London rivals.
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The £32million signing from Villarreal sealed victory in the 72nd minute after Trevoh Chalobah had superbly headed the hosts in front.
However, his goal provided a nice milestone for the striker, who surpassed Drogba’s tally of ten Premier League goals during his maiden campaign in 2004/05.
Jackson’s close-range header was his 11th of the season and his fourth against Spurs this season meaning a staggering 36 percent of his league goals this term have come against Ange Postecoglou’s side.
Despite his heroics, Jackson is yet to win over sections of the Stamford Bridge faithful, unlike Drogba, who was able to lead the Blues to back-to-back Premier League titles in his first two seasons.
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Drogba is widely regarded as one of Chelsea’s greatest ever strikers having netted 164 goals in 381 appearances over two spells at the club.
The Ivorian further enhanced his legendary status by scoring the winning penalty in the 2012 Champions League final in Munich – the club’s first triumph in the competition.
However, Jackson finds himself in a rather contrasting set of circumstances with the Blues currently eighth and scrapping to qualify for Europe next season.
In what appeared to be another dismal campaign, Chelsea have shown signs of improvement in recent weeks which has seen them close the gap on sixth-placed Manchester United to just three points with four games remaining.
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Pochettino’s side will fancy their chances in the run-in with West Ham, Nottingham Forest, Brighton and Bournemouth left to play.
Maximum points could see Chelsea claim either a Europa League or Europa Conference League spot.
Tony Cascarino believes Chelsea's biggest weakness is their lack of a clinical finisher and is unsure whether Nicolas Jackson is the answer for the Blues
In addition to a Carabao Cup final appearance and run to the FA Cup semi-finals, Pochettino’s side are showing signs of moving in the right direction, albeit slowly.