'He did that at Newcastle too' – Obi Mikel slams Chelsea striker over 'stupid' red card

Former Super Eagles captain John Obi Mikel has strongly criticized Chelsea forward Nicolas Jackson following his reckless red card during the Blues’ 3-1 defeat to Flamengo in the FIFA Club World Cup group stage on Friday evening.

Jackson, who was brought on in the 64th minute, was shown a straight red card just four minutes later after a dangerous studs-up challenge on Flamengo midfielder Lucas Ayrton.

The incident left Chelsea a man down during a critical stage of the game and drew heavy backlash from fans and pundits alike.

Reacting to the incident while analyzing the game on DAZN, Mikel did not hold back in his assessment of the Senegalese striker’s behavior on the pitch.

"Unbelievable, stupid mistake you can make," the former Chelsea midfielder said. 

"I don't know what is going through his head, you come into the game and you're 2-1 down at that point and your team needs you to get back into the game, and he does that."

The former Nigerian international also reflected on a previous incident where Jackson was sent off during a key Premier League clash against Newcastle United, accusing the striker of failing to learn from past mistakes.

"He did that in the league game at Newcastle, a very important game where we need to win to get into the Champions League,” Mikel added.

"And now he's coming again and he's done this. You can't keep making mistakes.”

Mikel also weighed in on the growing competition between Jackson and Chelsea’s recent signing Liam Delap. He urged Jackson to handle internal squad competition with maturity and use it as motivation to improve.

"I don't care what he's frustration is, it is a massive football club and it is about competition,” Mikel said. 

"If you're angry that Delap is coming to the club and he the competition with you then you have to embrace it. 

"Because the only way we can be successful and win trophies is when we compete against each other."

Chelsea’s loss to Flamengo puts them second in their group with three points. 

The Blues now face a must-win final group match against Esperance of Tunisia to advance to the knockout stage of the competition.

Adeyemi Adewale

Photo Credit: chelseafc.com

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