Former Chelsea midfielder, John Mikel Obi has denied calling Nicolas Jackson a “bad player.”
This comes after the Senegal international told him to ‘shut up’ in a social media post.
Mikel criticised Jackson after the Blues 2-0 defeat to champions Manchester City last month.
The former Nigeria captain said : ” We’ve played okay, not perfectly, but okay.
‘We created chances but didn’t take them. Jackson’s finishing is a in loopprime example. Even though he was offside, you could see how he dribbled past one, two, three players and the way he struck the ball!’
‘You need a striker who knows how to put the ball in the back of the net, and that’s what we’re lacking. I know I talk a lot about him, and it might sound like I’m being disrespectful, but I’m not.
‘At Chelsea, we need a top striker who can score goals—a bit like Haaland, who has scored 91 goals for City. That’s absolutely unbelievable.”
Jackson responded by telling Mikel “to shut up” after scoring in the West London club 7-2 rout of Southampton the following week.
Mikel has now come out to defend himself stating that he does not have bad intention towards the player.
“I’ve always said what I’ve said about Nicolas Jackson. He is a good player, there is not once I have ever said he is a bad player,” the former Super Eagles captain told beIN Sports.
“It’s not coming from a bad place, it’s really constructive criticism. But he doesn’t (see it that way). That’s why when he scored, he told me to shut up!”