Chelsea suffered a 3-1 defeat to Flamengo at the Club World Cup, and Nicolas Jackson made the headlines for all the wrong reasons.
The Blues kicked off the competition with a win over Los Angeles FC in their opening game. They were expected by many to win again when they faced Flamengo, but things didn’t go to plan.
The Brazilian giants conceded early to Pedro Neto, but two second-half goals in the space of three minutes turned things around. Flamengo then added a third in the 83rd minute to take the game beyond Chelsea’s reach.
Enzo Maresca’s side were clearly not at their best, but what made things worse for them was Jackson’s red card just minutes after he came on.
Carlton Cole thinks Liam Delap will be happy about Nicolas Jackson’s red card
Nicolas Jackson’s red card means that he will have to serve a suspension.
The Senegal international will now miss Chelsea’s final group stage game against ES Tunis, which is not ideal at all for Maresca and his staff.
But, Jackson’s unavailability will open the door for new signing Liam Delap to keep his place in the starting lineup.
Carlton Cole, who played 32 times for Chelsea back in the day, thinks the former Ipswich Town man will be ‘salivating’ at the opportunity.
He said on talkSPORT: “It doesn’t help when your striker gets sent off with a nonsense tackle that really didn’t have to go that way.
“When I look at the whole tournament, Maresca has got a lot of thinking to do. He might get something out of the tournament to see who he can actually depend on, the ones that he can trust to go to the trenches with him.
“But, for now, there are a few calls to be made on a few players. Jackson hasn’t made his case strong enough now because you can’t be doing that. It was a bad challenge as well, to be honest.
“And Delap is just going to be salivating at the opportunity because he didn’t think it would’ve come this quickly.”
READ MORE: Chelsea fans react to Liam Delap’s full debut as clear Nicolas Jackson message sent after Flamengo loss
Nicolas Jackson releases a statement for Chelsea fans after his red card
Jackson is no stranger to red cards.
The striker, who just turned 24, has been sent off six times in his career already, and the one against Flamengo was his second in a Chelsea shirt.
Jackson was already suspended for the last two Premier League games of the 2024/25 season because of the red card he received against Newcastle United.
Now, he will miss Chelsea’s next Club World Cup game too, and he is furious with himself for ending up in this position again.
Nicolas Jackson with a hoodie on looking on before a Chelsea game
Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images
After the game, he released a statement on his Instagram Story, saying: “I want to say sorry. To the club, the staff, my teammates, and all the fans watching, I let you down.
“Another red card… and honestly, I’m so angry at myself. I work hard every day to help the team not to put us in this kind of situation. I still don’t fully understand how it happened.
“But one thing is clear: it wasn’t intentional. Just a football moment that went the wrong way.
“No excuses. I take full responsibility. I’ll reflect, I’ll grow, and I’ll come back stronger for the badge and for everyone who believes in me. Sorry, sorry, sorry!”