Chelsea set £100m price tag on striker Mikel Obi once doubted as ‘not good enough for top 4’

Chelsea have reportedly set a firm £100 million asking price for Senegal international Nicolas Jackson amid growing transfer interest from European giants, Soccernet.ng reports.

The 23-year-old forward, signed from Villarreal in 2023, enjoyed a mixed debut campaign at Stamford Bridge but has become a key figure under new manager Enzo Maresca.

According to UK media reports, particularly Daily Mail, Chelsea are reluctant to part with Jackson unless their £100 million valuation is met, which further shows how much faith they have in his long-term potential.

Chelsea have set a £100M asking price for Nicolas Jackson.

(Source: Mail) pic.twitter.com/XRJQbJDUnt

— Transfer News Live (@DeadlineDayLive) July 12, 2025

The news comes in as a shocker and a contrast to comments made by former Super Eagles captain and Chelsea legend Mikel Obi earlier this year.

Mikel Obi on Nicolas Jackson

As earlier reported by Soccernet, speaking on his widely followed Obi One Podcast, Mikel openly expressed doubts about Jackson’s consistency and finishing ability:

“We are creating chances, we are still playing well, we are still doing the right things but we’re not clinical enough, we’re not scoring goals,

“We’ve talked about getting another top, top striker who can win us these kind of games, difficult games where if Nicolas Jackson is not firing on all cylinders you can give him a rest and then get someone else to come into the team and try to win us games and score goals.

“We are not clinical enough, he is not scoring enough goals. He puts himself in the right positions but then he’s not finishing, he’s not scoring enough.

“He’s not a striker who’s going to get us to the top four or win us the Premier League title. He’s not that striker. I don’t think he can get us over the line in terms of winning trophies. For me, he’s a player who can link up play, he’s good on the ball but he’s not scoring enough goals.”

With Chelsea now setting Jackson’s price at £100 million, it’s clear the club believes he can live up to that potential.

It is still unknown if suitors will meet that valuation, but what is known is that Jackson appears set to remain a central figure at Stamford Bridge.