Why Nicolas Jackson travelled to Villarreal after defeat at Newcastle

Chelsea fell to a rather shocking 4-1 defeat at the hands of Newcastle United this past weekend.

The Blues will be eager to bounce back on Sunday when they play host to a Brighton side who continue to struggle for clean sheets. Back Chelsea to beat Brighton at 7/10 with bet365.

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December 03, 2023

2:00 pm GMT

Nicolas Jackson travels to Spain

The mood from the Chelsea faithful following a 4-1 drubbing from a half-strength Newcastle side was obviously quite tense.

This was exacerbated when Nicolas Jackson caused a stir on social media when he was spotted in Villarreal’s dressing room less than 24 hours after Chelsea’s 4-1 defeat to Newcastle.

However, the striker’s return to his former club was pre-planned and during approved time off.

On Saturday, Mauricio Pochettino tore into his players, calling them “soft in every challenge” and “not ready to compete”, questioned their “maturity, personality and character” and threatened to cancel two scheduled days off.

However, the Chelsea players were allowed their time off, with Pochettino having only raised the idea of an early return to training as a possibility.