Nicolas Jackson has hit out at former Chelsea hero John Obi Mikel after the Blues bounced back from the opening weekend defeat with 6-2 thrashing of Wolves.
Enzo Maresca has endured a baptism of fire since taking over from Mauricio Pochettino with events off the field and another chaotic transfer window rendering his attempts to bring stability to the club even more challenging.
A home defeat against Manchester City hardly helped the new manager endear himself to his new fans and the nature of the 2-0 reversal led Obi Mikel to question the direction his old club was traveling in.
The former Champions League winner reserved particular criticism for Jackson who missed several presentable chances to bring his side back into the contest.
Senegal international Jackson has represented something of a divisive figure since his move from Villarreal a year ago with his erratic finishing undermining some of his more obvious positive attributes.
Jackson was, however, back on the scoresheet on Sunday, heading home his side’s opening goal with an instinctive effort with just two minutes on the clock.
After the game, the 23-year-old couldn’t resist firing back at Obi Mikel with a stinging riposte on Instagram which read: ‘Shut your mouth don’t talk s***, we are killing ourselves for Africa.’
After a rollercoaster opening period, meanwhile, Maresca was encouraged by a second half display that married attacking endeavour with defensive control.
‘In the second half we changed something and it was better,’ said Maresca. ‘I thought the intention in the first half was good but we lost four or five easy balls from set-pieces and counter attacks.
‘The second half was completely different and we didn’t lose any balls and were in control of the game. The tactical plan in the second half was the same but we were a bit more accurate in the second half and didn’t give away any easy balls.
‘That is the intention (to attack) but there are teams there that want the same so it’s not easy.
‘In the first 10 minutes we created two or three chances and scored a goal and then we started to lose the ball, but overall a good performance.
‘Absolutely there always things we can improve on. We can learn many things.’
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