It's no surprise that Chelsea boss Enzo Marseca has difficult decisions to make given the enormous size of the Blues' roster. The Italian has already frozen a full squad's worth of players out of the mix.
Yet the kind of decision he must make up front as the season progresses is the type of choice he will welcome, as it comes between two players currently in exceptional form.
After Christopher Nkunku's dazzling performance in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday, Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca made it clear he understands the situation.
"I'm happy for Pedro [Neto], Christopher [Nkunku], Joao [Felix] - all of them. They all deserve to start but they are not playing in this moment," Maresca said after the 5-0 win over Barrow. "They are both [Nkunku and Jackson] doing fantastic, not just because they score but the work on and off the ball.
So moving forward, should Maresca stick with what's working and leave Nicolas Jackson in until no longer viable, or will he switch things up and give Nkunku a chance to shine in league play as he did midweek in domestic Cup action?
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Christopher Nkunku makes case with hat-trick in Carabao Cup
French forward Christopher Nkunku has had a difficult start to life at Chelsea, with his first season in London blighted by repeated injuries. Now finally fit and ready to compete for his spot, he's had to make the most of minimal time on the pitch, with just one Premier League start to this point.
Thus, when he poured on a hat-trick against League Two side Barrow in the EFL Cup third round on Tuesday, it will certainly give Enzo Maresca pause when crafting future team sheets. His haul came via a 100% performance in front of goal, with three goals on three shots worth just 1.1 xG.
Nkunku is a versatile forward who can play both as a true No. 9 or behind a central forward as a second striker, which could allow Maresca to get creative, but his latest starting performance came deployed as the main option up front, with Joao Felix in support. It would be difficult to fit both in anyways, given Cole Palmer has rightly entrenched himself into the No. 10 spot, meaning Nkunku would have to be deployed alongside Jackson in a formation that would require further reshuffling to fit all three into the XI.
While the level of opposition in Tuesday's Cup match will certainly make it hard for Nkunku to earn too much favor from his starring performance, adding it to his late winner against Bournemouth and his strong pre-season performances, and he has astrong case to be on the pitch more often.
🇫🇷🎩 Christopher Nkunku had himself some fun against League Two Barrow in the #CarabaoCup.
— FotMob (@FotMob) September 24, 2024
The Chelsea striker doubled his goals tally for the season by scoring a hat-trick in a 5-0 victory for the Blues. pic.twitter.com/vzygMl6oAV
Nicolas Jackson making it hard for Enzo Maresca to drop him
Unfortunately for Nkunku, the current starter Nicolas Jackson is putting up numbers that would be difficult to see the Senegal international dropped.
The 23-year-old has bagged four goals in five Premier League appearances this season, including a brace last time out against West Ham in 64 minutes of play. Adding two assists to that as well, and Jackson has been the main attacking contributor for the Blues, combining extremely well with Cole Palmer who has fed Jackson with an assist and received one from him as well.
While Jackson still has to prove he can provide goals without loads of service — his four goals this season have all come on big chances worth 0.26 xG or higher — it feels harsh to nitpick in such a way given how vital he has been to the side.
