CHELSEA have extended Nicolas Jackson’s contract to keep him at Stamford Bridge for the next NINE YEARS.
The Senegalese forward, 23, joined from Villarreal for £32million last summer on an eight-year deal.
He scored 17 goals in 44 appearances in his first season in England but divided opinion among Blues supporters.
However, that has not stopped Chelsea bosses offering him a longer deal just 12 months after his arrival.
According to The Athletic, Jackson’s new contract runs until 2033 after the club triggered an option to prolong his stay.
He joins Cole Palmer in being tied down by Chelsea for the next nine years after the England international penned a new deal last month.
It means the club have 16 players on deals that run until 2030 or beyond.
Some of those include Enzo Fernandez, Moises Caicedo, Mykhailo Mudryk, Noni Madueke, Joao Felix and Pedro Neto.
And fans are stumped as to why Chelsea seem to be the only club handing out long contracts to a huge number of players.
Reacting on social media, one said: “‘Now secured for the next 9 years’. Literally no other club in world football operates this way. Insanity.”
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CHELSEA are a circus — aren’t they?, writes Troy Deeney.
But the bigger concern should be if somehow, some way, Todd Boehly’s insane master-plan brings about success this season.
Finish in the top four. Win a trophy like the FA Cup.
He will then turn around and say: “See, it works” and all of a sudden, other clubs will begin considering copying this mad model to try and compete in the Premier League.
Before you know it, there will be a bigger divide between the top clubs and the rest and this country’s top flight will become something we have been fighting against — a Super League.
The smaller sides and promoted teams will be wiped out by the elite and will end up saying, ‘What’s the point?’
Football as we know it will change, and there will be no going back.
As a neutral, you don’t want to wish failure on a club or a regime, but it’s depressing to think about.
We should almost be looking at it in amazement — the owners have come in with this model and they’ve treated it as if they are buying stocks and shares, not players or human beings.
Boehly has wiped away any sense of sentiment or old-school values from that club and the worrying thing is that he doesn’t seem to care.
Does he even like football?
Read Troy Deeney’s hard-hitting opinion on Boehly’s Chelsea shambles in full.
Or check out all of Troy’s columns on SunSport.
While another added: “9 YEARS? ”
A third responded: “What sorta contracts are they offering these guys at Chelsea? Never seen anything like this. Ever.”
And a fourth replied: “9 years this is imprisonment.”
It is understood Jackson is “key” to new manager Enzo Maresca‘s “central attacking core”.
Chelsea missed out on Victor Osimhen and Ivan Toney on Deadline Day.
Osimhen failed to secure a move away from Napoli, while Toney joined Saudi Arabian side Al-Ahli.
Jackson scored and assisted in Chelsea’s 6-2 win over Wolves last weekend.
