JOHN OBI MIKEL has fired back at Nicolas Jackson after the Chelsea star’s foul-mouthed blast at him.
The Blues icon was on the receiving end of an outburst by Jackson following Sunday’s 6-2 win at Wolves.
Jackson let rip at Mikel after scoring the opener at Molineux.
He wrote on Instagram: "@Mikel_john_obi shut your mouth. Don't talk s***, we are killing ourselves for Africa."
Jackson had been responding to Mikel’s criticism of his struggles against Man City the week before.
But the Nigerian reckons he will be happy to take more heat from Jackson - if the Senegal striker bags more goals.
He said: “I really like the guy as a football player. I like him. There's something there as a football player.
“I haven't said that he's a bad player at all. I've just said that his finishing qualities, it's not there yet.
“He's a young boy and all I've said is that he needs a more experienced striker to come into the football club to help him, to help him improve, to help him get better.
“We all can see the shift he puts in week in, week out. So for me, I would like to see my African brother like he said do well in the Premier League, come to Chelsea, a big club, a massive club where we've had one of the greatest strikers in Didier Drogba from Africa, Ivory Coast did really well.
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“I’d like to see him do well as well in the club. If he plays well I will praise him. If there is something to be said about him, where he needs to improve, I will definitely say it.
“If he scores every week and tells me to shut up, I'll take that. You know what I mean?”
Mikel had earlier called Jackson 'not a top striker'.
He said at the time: "You need a striker who knows how to hit a ball back in the back of the net and that's what we don't have.
"I know I talk so much about him and sometimes I sound like I disrespect him. I don't disrespect him.
"I think at Chelsea Football Club we need a top striker who can get us a goal.
"A bit like [Haaland], 91 goals [for City] that's absolutely unbelievable."
Former midfielder Mikel spent over a decade at Chelsea, playing 372 games between 2006 and 2017.
Mikel also won plenty of trophies including two titles, four FA Cups and the Champions League.
He has been critical of Todd Boehly's policy of buying younger players rather than proven Premier League stars.
Huncle_lucky
49
Truth is bitter Jackson needs to channel his energy on goals rather then responding/insulting legends
yoyantyz
33
Jackson is a fool. Mikel is one of our legends, his time at Chelsea was a good one. Where DD was the main striker, no skill but strong and was a good finisher. Mikel and the others just play the ball around and gave it to Didier and it is goal. Jackson, you need to listen to your big brothers not to insult them. You have wasted our goals too much. It is painful seeing the team you once played for to be going down the drain is bad.
Nino_Luxury
16
As an African, a true Nigerian🇳🇬. N. Jackson is one of the greatest strikers we've ever had in a long time, with the potential to become the best ever. He's our current leading goal-scorer without penalty, and his link-up play and goal involvement are crazy, Jackson made Palmer💙🫡 He's my favorite and he deserves to be respected, enough is enough, let's stop fighting our own for a few chances missed