By Nicolas Jackson, a Senegal striker, rewarded his manager’s faith on Saturday at the London Stadium by leading Chelsea to a 3-0 victory over West Ham.
Before Cole Palmer sealed Chelsea’s third victory in five Premier League games under new manager Enzo Maresca, Jackson scored twice in the first half.
Senegal great Jackson will remain at Stamford Bridge until 2033 thanks to a contract deal he signed earlier in September, but when the French forward scored in the 1-0 victory at Bournemouth, there were cries for Nkunku to start.
Jackson had an uneven first season with the Blues, scoring 17 goals but missing several excellent opportunities.
However, the 23-year-old has been playing well so far this season, scoring four goals in just six appearances across all competitions.
This season, Chelsea has won all three of its away league games and only lost one, to champions Manchester City, in their five top-flight encounters.
Former Leicester manager Maresca took over for Mauricio Pochettino in the off-season, and he has impressed so far, despite a rumored power struggle between the Chelsea co-owners, Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali, behind closed doors.
There are promising hints that the Italian could be the manager to elevate Chelsea’s lavishly built group of underachievers into the top four after their disappointing sixth and 12th place results in the previous two seasons.
Due to the Hammers’ terrible start to the season, new manager Julen Lopetegui is already under pressure. The few disgruntled supporters who had left the stadium before the final whistle have been making fun of the former manager of Real Madrid and Spain.
For the first time in their league history, West Ham has only won one of their five Premier League games this season. They have also lost three straight at home.
In just four minutes, Jackson ran down the right wing after receiving a feed from Jadon Sancho at a free kick, which gave Chelsea the lead.
Jackson easily overcame Alphonse Areola’s feeble attempt at a save after cutting into the penalty area.
Since Daniel Sturridge scored against QPR in 2012, Chelsea had not trailed in a Premier League London derby at this early point.
Jackson was becoming harder for West Ham to contain, and he set Cole Palmer up for a low shot that narrowly missed.
Chelsea applied constant pressure, and their second goal in the eighteenth minute seemed inevitable.
A fluid play culminated with a clever ball from Moises Caicedo that sliced through the West Ham defense and found Jackson, who calmly finished beyond Areola.
Jarrod Bowen’s awful shot, which soared beyond an excellent position, perfectly summed up West Ham’s slow start.
After joining West Ham in the off-season from Leeds, Crysencio Summerville made his first league start for the team. He was sent flying by a tug from Wesley Fofana, and he called for a penalty, but VAR turned down his pleas.
Before the half, Lopetegui, infuriated by West Ham’s indolence, removed Argentina midfielder Guido Rodríguez.
However, Rodriguez’s substitute Lopetegui’s attitude was considerably lifted by Thomas Soucek’s careless shot straight at Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sanchez.
In his first Premier League start since May 2023, Sancho seemed revitalized after going on loan from Manchester United, causing issues with his deft dribbling.
Palmer put West Ham out of business in the 47th minute when the England striker received a feed from Jackson and tapped past Areola from a close angle.
