Chelsea have been slammed over their Nicolas Jackson transfer ‘error’ after Wednesday’s 3-1 Champions League defeat to Bayern Munich.
The Blues allowed Jackson to join Bayern on loan for the 2025-26 campaign, with the German champions paying an initial £14m fee.
The deal will be made permanent if Jackson plays 40 matches for Bayern this season – with an obligation to buy for a further £56m – to total £70m.
Chelsea were willing to let Jackson, who operated as their main striker last season, join Bayern after they signed both Joao Pedro and Liam Delap.
But Delap has since been sidelined with a hamstring injury, with Chelsea forced to recall Marc Guiu from his Sunderland loan to be Pedro’s back-up.
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Jackson came off the bench to play against Chelsea on Wednesday, with UEFA loan rules allowing him to feature against his parent club.
Former Chelsea midfielder Geremi believes his old club have made a mistake in offloading Jackson.
‘I think overall it’s an error to let him join Bayern Munich,’ Geremi told BestBettingSites.co.uk.
‘If you want to compete in all the big tournaments, you need a big squad.
‘Chelsea are looking to be one of those teams that are contenders every year and they need strength in depth – but they have lost a talented striker.
‘Of course, the other consideration is that I heard he wasn’t really happy. And it’s always tough to keep a player who is unhappy, it often is a mistake.
‘He understandably might not have been interested in playing as a back-up.
‘Given he was unsettled, I understand why they let him go, but it could still backfire on them.’
Bayern chief Uli Hoeness has said Jackson will return to Chelsea next summer and will ‘definitely not’ sign a permanent contract with the Bundesliga side.
But former Chelsea player and manager Roberto Di Matteo believes Hoeness is bluffing.
‘If he scores 20 goals for Bayern this season, do you think they are going to buy him or not?’ Di Matteo told Metro via BetVictor Online Casino.
‘The season has barely started. He’s only just joined Bayern. Let’s give the boy a chance to show his quality.
‘I’m not sure Bayern are serious. I don’t believe that they’ve already made a decision.’
