Chelsea loanee Nicolas Jackson was sent off while playing for Bayern Munich on Saturday afternoon for a high challenge that left his opponent withering in pain.
Jackson has found it hard going since forcing through a move to the German giants in the summer, when Chelsea tried to perform a U-turn on letting him leave Stamford Bridge.
In 25 games for his current side, he has managed seven goals, often having to play second fiddle to Harry Kane. He has started just six league games this term.
But Kane’s recent fitness struggles have presented Jackson with a chance to shine, though he appears to have blown that in being shown a straight red card against Bayer Leverkusen.
It left his side up against the odds in the Bundesliga fixture. They had gone behind early courtesy of a goal from Aleix Garcia, and Jackson was given his marching orders after 42 minutes.
His high tackle on Martin Terrier left the Leverkusen man needing treatment, as the challenge was referred for an assessment by the VAR officials. It was then upgraded to a red card.
Chelsea loanee Nicolas Jackson was sent off for a high challenge while playing for Bayern Munich on Saturday
The forward was given his chance to start amid fitness issues for main forward Harry Kane
Luis Diaz managed to pull his side level in the second-half, and Kane was introduced just after the hour mark as he continues his return from injury. The game finished 1-1, but Diaz was also sent off late on as Vincent Kompany’s side finished with nine men.
Jackson had hoped to leave Chelsea permanently in the summer but the obligation for Bayern to buy him from the Blues cannot be met.
The forward moved for a loan fee of £14.2million, with a whopping obligation to buy of £56.2m if he hit an appearance quota. Chelsea tried to cancel the deal after Liam Delap’s injury, but the striker refused to return to London as his agent and Bayern worked desperately to schmooze the Blues.
It worked, but it appears that it has been confirmed that he will be returning to Chelsea at the end of the season – with the quota impossible to hit already.
The quota is that Jackson has to start 40 games, as revealed by Bayern president Uli Hoeness earlier on this season. There are not enough games left for him to do so.
That means he will return to the Blues, with his contract running until 2031.
As Daily Mail Sport revealed earlier this season, however, Jackson and his adviser, the former Portsmouth, West Brom and Fulham striker Diomansy Kamara, are taking little notice of those terms. They believe if Jackson shows he can score, Bayern will find a way to sign him permanently next summer.
Kamara was previously asked whether he could see Jackson returning to Chelsea, on an episode of Talents D’Afrique shown on Canal+ Sport, to which he replied: ‘Absolutely not. Absolutely not.
Jackson is expected to return to Chelsea this summr after terms around Bayern’s obligation to buy were not met
‘Today at Chelsea, the relationship with (Enzo) Maresca (former manager) isn’t necessarily the best. We’re never going to bite the hand that feeds us because Chelsea allowed him to find the European level.
‘He was there for two years and scored 30 goals, so he always had a good relationship. After, it’s true that the red cards complicated it at Chelsea. Today, we’re looking towards Bayern having a good season. We will see what is best for him. But it’s true that Bayern is a priority for him for a long time.’