Ekitike chance, Osimhen U-turn – Chelsea striker transfer alternatives if Nicolas Jackson leaves

Noise. Nicolas Jackson’s last six months have been full of it.

As 2025 has gone on, the Chelsea striker has been more and more in focus. Even when he isn’t playing, the debates around him and his credibility as a top-level No.9 continue.

At the Club World Cup, Chelsea’s tournament has gone well as a team, not without some minor hitches, but for Jackson it has been a relative nightmare. It really did peak at his first half assist for Pedro Neto in the opening game against Los Angeles FC.

From there, a moment of pure Jackson-ness in his neat turn and threaded pass with the agility and control that very few centre forwards possess, it has been downhill. Liam Delap’s introduction for him after the break was the initial sign.

Delap, picked up for £30million and drawing great attention for his bullish approach and the pure fact of not being Nicolas Jackson, had plenty of early praise. His cameo from the bench, which included a great assist for Enzo Fernandez (showing a side to his game that many did not expect this quickly), immediately put Jackson’s competition in focus.

Delap was already going to be fighting for the starting role but had not been expected to necessarily take it from Jackson straight away. His early sightings were positive.

Although Jackson had done very little wrong up to this point, he was not the shiny new toy or name. Delap’s own relationship with Cole Palmer had caught the eye. The things he was doing got people talking, even if Jackson had also been doing them.

Then came the red card. Barely a month after his first one (in the Premier League away at Newcastle United), Jackson was sent off again in America. Chelsea had been pegged back by Flamengo in the second group stage game that looked likely to decide who faced Bayern Munich in the harder of the two last-16 games.

Jackson’s rush of blood on his birthday, sending his studs into the shin of an opponent, hardly four minutes after coming on, condemned his teammates to 30 minutes of chasing the ball in intense heat. Chelsea continued their collapse without Jackson but his actions were unforgivable.

The ban, which would make Delap the first choice striker for Enzo Maresca, as he was destined to be for the opening league match with Crystal Palace due to Jackson’s suspension, got upgraded to two games. Throughout this, talk and noise of his future have continued.

Much like Chelsea’s dealings with Noni Madueke, Jackson has not been ruled out of a transfer. The club’s messaging that he is part of their plans is consistent but Jackson is a player of interest to others across Europe.

He would represent healthy profit with two possible replacements already through the door in Delap and Joao Pedro. It is Pedro who has really put a cat amongst the pigeons.

First, he was selected to go on ahead of Jackson in the Palmeiras quarter-final, which Delap got the nod to start. Jackson had served his suspension but was, it seems, still being punished.

Pedro had a bright and lively 35 minutes or so. With Delap then out of the semi-final through yellow card accumulation, the decision was whether Jackson returned or Pedro got a full debut. When Maresca’s lineup emerged and further reports of uncertainty around Jackson’s long-term position at Chelsea were made public again, the direction of travel starts to become clear.

But if Jackson was to leave, what are Chelsea’s options? Here, football.london looks at three possible alternatives in the transfer market, to go on top of Delap and Pedro.

Hugo Ekitike

This was one for the early stages of the window. Ekitike is one of the best young strikers out there, having only just turned 23. He scored 22 goals across all competitions last season from just over 3,600 minutes. The Frenchman also assisted 12.

His impressive Bundesliga record of 23 goal contributions from 33 games (31 starts) has drawn the attention of Europe’s finest. Chelsea are among them and hold Ekitike in high regard.

However, with Ekitike’s talent is a mammoth price. They want £84.5million for him, which has so far proven to be a serious stumbling block for any team.

Should Chelsea sell Jackson for a sizeable fee, which he would likely fetch, then it might make Ekitike’s valuation more acceptable. The pair have similar profiles as rangy dribblers with skill in tight spaces. Ekitike is the new version of Alexander Isak at Real Sociedad. He might even be better.

Nick Woltemade

From a striker tipped to be among the top performers at the Under-21 Euros to another who actually went on to play and star. Woltemade is also 23, even taller than Ekitike, and a scorer of goals.

He is current at Stuttgart, where he managed 17 in all competitions last season from 33 appearances. He also assisted three. That form continued into the Euros.

For Germany, Woltemade scored in four of the five matches he featured in, only missing the final group stage game with his country through already.

During that period, Woltemade bagged an opening day hat-trick and then a goal and two assists in the second. He scored in both the quarter and semi-finals before going without in the final against England.

Chelsea have been tentatively linked and could go in for him more strongly if Jackson was to go.

Victor Osimhen

And finally, the name that won’t go away. Osimhen has been closing in on a permanent exit from Napoli, who still own him, remarkably, but nothing has yet been completed.

Galatasaray have moved into pole position, or so it seems, yet nobody will be counting their chickens with him just yet. Osimhen remains a unique player in this market.

He is extremely expensive with some of the largest wage demands and bonuses around, with an elite record in the past, but doubts over how much of the hassle he is worth. Chelsea have been in a tango with Osimhen before and their stories are forever entangled.

Osimhen is Premier League-coded. He has that match-winning and unpredictable streak to him. If Chelsea have the need for another striker and Osimhen is still in limbo then it would only be right to make a play for him.