Football
Exclusive: Nicolas Jackson Wanted Back in Premier League with Newcastle and Villa Ready to Move
Newcastle United and Aston Villa are vying to sign Bayern Munich striker Nicolas Jackson, whose future at the club is uncertain. Both Premier League clubs are monitoring the situation closely, with Jackson keen to stay in Bavaria but open to a return to England. Chelsea, his parent club, are looking to recoup their £35m investment.
FC Bayern München v Sport-Club Freiburg - Bundesliga by Daniel Kopatsch | Getty Images
Newcastle and Aston Villa will try and tempt Nicolas Jackson back to the Premier League next summer, as the striker’s future at Bayern Munich continues to be shrouded in doubt, SportsBoom can exclusively reveal.
Jackson joined the German giants on loan at the beginning of the season, after being declared surplus to requirements by his parent club Chelsea.
Despite paying a record £14m to facilitate the temporary transfer, Vincent Kompany’s employers refused to insert an obligation to buy clause into their deal with The Blues.
And that has alerted two of their top-flight rivals to the possibility of tabling bids for Jackson at the end of the campaign.
Sources close to the Senegal international have insisted he would jump at the chance to remain in Bavaria beyond the terms of his present agreement.
Indeed, Jackson is understood to have enrolled on a German language course in order to enhance his hopes of earning a permanent switch to the Allianz Arena.
DESIRE
Although Kompany made his desire to capture Jackson plain to the Bayern board, the Bundesliga outfit’s hierarchy have yet to take a decision on whether to retain the services of a player who has netted nine times on 22 outings for both club and country so far this term.
That has only served to encourage Newcastle, who are currently 12th in the table, and third-placed Villa to continue monitoring Jackson’s situation.
Eddie Howe, The Magpies head coach, is a long-standing admirer of Jackson and believes he can help his squad put matches to bed rather than surrender points after failing to translate chances into goals.
Unai Emery, Howe’s counterpart in the Midlands, also admires Jackson’s qualities and thinks he can help lessen Villa’s dependence upon Ollie Watkins.
Both would be forced to pay around £60m to secure Jackson’s signature.
Earlier this year, Everton were also linked with a move for Jackson, with David Moyes eager to reunite him up front alongside Senegal teammate Iliman Ndiaye, though those rumours have since gone quiet.
PROSPECT
Although the 24-year-old’s preference is to stay at Bayern, sources close to his camp say the prospect of continuing his career in England also appeals as he looks to prove a point to Blues boss Enzo Maresca and his sporting directors Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart.
Jackson scored 24 goals in 59 league starts for the Londoners, but a series of disciplinary issues, which included a red card during last season’s defeat by Howe’s men, saw him plummet down the pecking order during a training camp in the USA.
Chelsea paid £35m to land Jackson from Villarreal in July 2023 and are determined to recoup a significant dividend on their investment.
Neil has been a journalist for longer than he'd care to remember, having written for national newspapers and respected publications for over 25 years. For the last three years he has worked freelance for BBC Sport, working on the production desk as a sub-editor and also as a writer, covering a whole range of sports.