Maresca drops Chelsea injury update on Nicolas Jackson and Marc Guiu

Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca has now provided an injury update on Nicolas Jackson and Marc Guiu after the duo sustained issues against West Ham United on Monday night.

Blues edge past the Hammers

The Blues made hard work of it, but they returned to winning ways in the Premier League with a 2-1 victory against London rivals West Ham United on Monday night. Maresca’s side went in a goal down at the break, with Jarrod Bowen opening the scoring late in the first half, but a Pedro Neto effort and an Aaron Wan-Bissaka own-goal turned the game around after the hour mark.

The Chelsea boss was happy with his side’s performance, insisting it was a fair result in his post-match press conference: “We had more than 10 shots in the first half. We had clear chances in the first half but unfortunately, we missed the target. With some changes the game changed. Overall we completely deserved to win.”

The only cause for concern will be the fact Jackson had to be withdrawn early in the second half after sustaining a knock, before Guiu picked up an issue of his own late on, although the youngster was ultimately able to see out the match.

The Spaniard appeared to be hurt when he went down the tunnel, which will have caused some concern for Blues fans, particularly considering the transfer window closed shortly after full time.

However, Maresca has now provided a relatively promising update on the knocks sustained by the attacking duo, saying: “To be honest they both said to me that they’re okay so hopefully neither of them are injured.”

Of course, the pair will be assessed by the medical team, but it is encouraging that neither player was too hurt in the immediate aftermath of the game.

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Chelsea secured three vital points against West Ham United last night, taking them back into the top four.

Guiu impressing when given the opportunity

It has been a breakthrough season for the 19-year-old at Stamford Bridge, scoring six goals in as many Conference League games, so it is no wonder he has been handed an increasing amount of opportunities in the first-team set-up.

Jackson, on the other hand, has regressed somewhat since making a flying start to the Premier League season, failing to score in his last eight matches, stretching back to the 2-1 victory against Brentford back in December.

The 23-year-old has also consistently underperformed in terms of non-penalty goals over the past year, averaging just 0.47 goals per 90 despite an xG of 0.58 per 90.

As such, it may be worth Maresca considering handing Guiu his first Premier League start in the next few weeks, providing his recent injury issue is nothing more than a scare.