Who is Nicolas Jackson?

AFC Bournemouth are on the cusp of signing their second player of the Bill Foley era with Nicolas Jackson set for a £20million move.

The question is. Who is Nicolas Jackson?

Cherries fans may be excused to not know exactly who the 21-year-old forward is and what he will bring to Vitality stadium. So here at BUzz News we have decided to try and explain what fans can expect of the potential new arrival.

Let’s start with the basics. Jackson is a 21-year-old forward who can play in any position across the front line and currently plies his trade for La Liga side Villareal. So far this season, the forward has netted two goals in 14 la Liga appearances and has one goal in 6 UEFA Conference League games. The Cherries target also has three assists across 16 games in La Liga and the Copa Del Rey.

Jackson was also called up to Senegal’s World Cup squad, making his debut for Aliou Cisse’s side, coming on in the 74th minute of their 2-0 defeat to The Netherlands and was an unused substitute in the 3-0 defeat to England.

The versatile forward is very similar in style to the Cherries recent signing Dango Ouattara offering pace and a direct running style with the ball. On top of this he has the ability to play down the middle and hold up play and link play with midfielders, runners and wingers. This ability could be a useful asset to Gary O’Neil’s side.

O’Neil has already expressed a desire to bring a new number nine and this could very well be the role Jackson will undertake at the club, but could also play off the left flank when Dominic Solanke is fully fit, giving the Cherries a frighteningly fast and dynamic front three.

Jackson is also a player who is not shy of doing the defensive work required of a forward that will be in the midst of a relegation fight.

Stats from fbref.com, which are powered by Opta, reveal that Jackson has excellent defensive stats when compared with other forwards from Europe’s top five leagues.

As the stats suggests, the strikers’ tackles in the defensive third of the pitch put him in the top 90 percentile with high percentiles blocks and interceptions as well. This shows that Jackson is a player that puts in a shift and isn’t afraid of doing the hard defensively – something O’Neil will need from all of his players as the threat of relegation looms.

But lets not forget, Jackson has been brought in to score and create goals first-and-foremost, and although his numbers are nothing to scream about, the suggestion from the stats are that he is one of the more creative players in Europe’s top five leagues – especially when it comes to his ability to create goals from dribbling situations – again falling into the top 90 percentile for goals created via dribbles.

What Cherries fans can expect is another exciting young forward who with the determination and ability to succeed at Premier League level and if he can get off to the same kind of start as Ouattara then Bournemouth may start to climb the table and pull themselves away from the relegation zone.