Christopher Nkunku has revealed what Enzo Maresca asked him to do when he replaced Nicolas Jackson with just over ten minutes remaining against Bournemouth.
It appeared the Blues were set to drop more points after a frustrating evening on the south coast in which they were below their best.
The strength of the bench was the key factor in the end as the impressive Jadon Sancho set up Nkunku in the 86th minute, with the Frenchman calmly slotting the ball into the corner despite being under pressure from Bournemouth defenders.
Nkunku reveals Maresca’s instructions to him
Having been one of Chelsea’s shining lights in pre-season it’s been a frustrating start to the season for Nkunku and he’s only started one of the opening four Premier League games.
He scored two crucial penalties, one in each leg against Swiss side Servette in the Europa Conference League play off round, but has found minutes harder to come by in the league.
The 26-year-old picked a perfect time to score his first league goal of the season which earned the Blues a crucial three points and their second win of the campaign.
Competition for places is fierce in the attacking third of the pitch and Nkunku will be hoping his game winning cameo from the bench has given Maresca food for thought.
The France international detailed after the game what the Italian had asked him to do when he replaced Jackson.
“He just said that we need quality in the box and we have ten minutes left so he said for me to enjoy,” he told Chelsea’s website.
“It was good from Jadon [Sancho], I felt like I had the space behind me, so I turned and I was a little bit lucky because I had three defenders there, but I scored.”
Next up for Nkunku and his team-mates is a visit to West Ham on Saturday lunchtime with the Blues looking to record back to back wins in the league for the first time this season.
