Inside Nicolas Jackson’s private conversation with Sadio Mane about Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino

Nicolas Jackson has been told what to expect from Chelsea head coach Mauricio Pochettino after completing his switch to Stamford Bridge.

The 22-year-old has joined Chelsea on an eight-year contract until June 2031 after a €37 million fee was agreed with Villarreal, who Jackson scored 12 goals for in La Liga last season.

He bolsters their attacking line following the acquisition of Christopher Nkunku last month and will link up with the squad and Pochettino for the first time next week when they begin to report back to their Cobham training base for pre-season.

Prior to moving to Stamford Bridge, Jackson sought out advice from his fellow countryman on his new boss, Pochettino, and spoke to Bayern Munich winger Sadio Mane.

Mane offered a glowing verdict of the 51-year-old and believes Jackson will continue to improve under Pochettino should he follow his advice.

Speaking to the official Chelsea website upon signing, Jackson revealed: “I spoke to Sadio Mane about him and he spoke very highly of him, he said amazing things about him.

“Sadio told me the manager is going to help me a lot to improve and do well if I listen to what he has to tell me, so that is exactly what I’m going to do.”

Jackson believes he is going to do “amazing things” at Chelsea and had no doubts over opting to join the Blues.

He added: ‘When Chelsea came there was no question in my mind. I always had this kind of team in my mind. I talked to my family and my agent and I have icons who played here – Drogba and Ba, big strikers. So when Chelsea came my heart said the answer should be yes and I decided to follow it and come here.”

The Senegal international concluded: “I wanted to join a big team and Chelsea is one of the best teams in the world, plus I’ve watched them since I was young. I watched Demba Ba, Didier Drogba, Nicolas Anelka was good too, big players. So I always dreamed of playing for a team like this.”