Having seen their latest bid for Brentford’s Yoane Wissa rejected yesterday, the Newcastle hierarchy once again find themselves reassessing their options as they look to strengthen their attack.
The Magpies are understood to have at least some interest in Jackson, who has also been linked with a possible move to Aston Villa in the last few days.
Chelsea are keen to sell Jackson this summer, valuing the Senegalese 24-year-old at around £60m, and Maresca has confirmed the striker does not currently feature in his plans for the remainder of the season.
Along with fellow exile Christopher Nkunku, Jackson will not be part of Chelsea’s squad for tomorrow night’s game at West Ham, with the Blues inviting offers for his services.
“He is available, but he is not going to be part of the squad,” said Maresca. “We have two strikers \[Joao Pedro and Liam Delap\], two in that position, and also something can happen before the transfer window closes.
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“Christo (Nkunku) is with us but it’s the same answer as Nico. The other two players are training apart looking for a solution.
“We’ll see. If they are going to be here, they will be with us. If not, it means they found a solution. I think it’s better if they find a solution because they are going to be more happy.”
Jackson was regarded as one of the most promising strikers in European football when he joined Chelsea from Villarreal for a reported fee of around £32m in the summer of 2023.
Since then, he has scored 30 goals in 81 appearances for Chelsea, but while he found the net in last season’s Conference League final victory over Real Betis, he has never quite lived up to his reputation at Stamford Bridge.
Newcastle are searching for a replacement for Callum Wilson, who left as a free agent at the end of last season, although their attacking situation is also heavily dependent on what happens with Alexander Isak in the next week-and-a-half.
Newcastle’s determination to hold on to Isak was strengthened by the striker’s decision to issue a statement on social media earlier this week without giving club officials any prior notice of its release.