Gary Neville makes OUTRAGEOUS Darwin Nunez comparison with Chelsea star

Robin Bairner

• Updated: 25 Aug 2023 22:35 BST
• 3 min read

Chelsea signing Nicolas Jackson got off the mark for the Blues in Friday night’s 3-0 Premier League win over Luton Town at Stamford Bridge, and after the game the Senegal international star was compared to Liverpool striker Darwin Nunez by Manchester United legend Gary Neville.

Jackson turned in a polished performance up front for the Blues and should have had an assist to add to his goal shortly after half-time, when he slipped a clever back heel to Ben Chilwell, who inexplicably passed when well placed in the box.

This was allied to the industry of the 22-year-old, who was coming off the back of a strong preseason performance in which he quickly established himself as a major threat for the Blues.

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Speaking on Sky Sports in his role as a pundit, Neville questioned the technical attributes of Jackson, who arrived for €37 million from Villarreal in the summer.

“Is there a similarity to how Nunez was at Liverpool last season?” he asked Chelsea legend Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink. “There was a lot of running, a handful, a lot of runs out into the channels, harassing people but then just a little bit scruffy in that final part of the game.”

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Hasselbaink replied: “You want your striker to work hard, but you also want your striker to be there at the end to put the chances away and thank God he did that today.

“He works so hard for the whole team. His teams as magnificent, most sprints, most runs, but you want him in the box and make the damage. He did that for the third goal, he was there in the right place and he put it away. Hopefully now he can grow from that.”

Jackson vs Nunez

Liverpool signed Nunez for an initial fee of €80m but despite his industry he struggled to settle at Anfield and was shifted away from centre-forward to the left wing by Jurgen Klopp as he increasingly found game time hard to come by. He scored nine goals and set up three, but his lack of technical quality was often pointed out by rival fans.

This season, the Uruguayan is being used off the bench and has yet to start.

Jackson, on the other hand, already appears a more polished performer who has more intelligence to his game, suggesting that Chelsea have landed a better – and cheaper – alternative.