Nicolas Jackson hogged the headlines again for the wrong reasons after squandering a glaring goalscoring opportunity against Manchester City in the FA Cup semifinal at Wembley.
Enzo Fernandez had put the Senegalese forward clean through on goal with a through-ball. He then paced into Manchester City’s box, floored Manchester City goalkeeper Stefan Ortega, and had an open net to score only to miss it by attempting a back pass which was intercepted.
A goal by the former Villareal striker would have gone a long way to drastically change the trajectory of the game but he could not nailed it.
And the Blues got punished for the squandered opportunity when Bernardo Silva latched on a rebound from Petrovic and fired it into the back of the net with just six minutes of regulation time left.
Bernardo Silva’s late strike proved decisive as it separated the tie, ending Chelsea’s silverware hopes this season.
Meanwhile, a barrage of reactions have greeted Nicolas Jackson’s horrendous miss in the game. Chelsea fans took to social media to blast the Senegalese for his profligacies in front of goal.
A fan wrote, “Nicolas Jackson on the beat again with another big miss.”
Another fan wrote, “When Jackson starts converting his chances, that is when Chelsea will be effective on the attack.”
Another said, “Even a toddler could have converted this one. Why attempt a useless back pass when you have only the goalpost to beat?”
Another added, ”We desperately need a striker to join this guy. We can’t just be missing such big chances.”
Nicolas Jackson’s miss came exactly at the hour mark, 24 minutes before the Blues were punished 24 minutes later with Bernardo Silva’s strike.
In the other FA Cup semifinal, Manchester United will trade tackles with Coventry City. The Red Devils could set up a Manchester Derby FA Cup final in what could be a rematch of the 2023 final which Man City won at Wembley.
