Nicolas Jackson has returned to Chelsea after Bayern Munich decided against activating the £50 million option to sign him permanently.
Transfer expert Fabrizio Romano reported that Bayern confirmed the striker’s immediate return after opting not to trigger the clause.
Although manager Vincent Kompany was satisfied with Jackson’s performances, the Bundesliga champions ended months ago that the agreed fee was too high.
Chelsea will now decide the Senegal international’s next move.
Jackson’s return comes just hours after a painful end to his 2026 World Cup campaign with Senegal.
The African side looked on course for the quarter-finals after racing into a 2-0 lead against Belgium in Seattle. Habib Diarra opened the scoring from a rebound before Ismaila Sarr controlled Moussa Niakhate’s long pass and fired beyond Thibaut Courtois early in the second half.
Belgium, however, produced a dramatic late fightback. Romelu Lukaku, introduced from the bench alongside former Chelsea winger Diego Moreira, pulled one back in the 86th minute before Leandro Trossard combined with Youri Tielemans for a swift equaliser.
Jackson came on early in extra time with the score at 2-2, while Mamadou Sarr and Mike Penders remained unused substitutes throughout the game.
Belgium completed the turnaround in stoppage time of extra time when Tielemans converted a penalty after a lengthy VAR review ruled that Lamine Camara had committed a foul inside the box.
The defeat ended Senegal’s World Cup dream heartbreakingly, only months after losing their Africa Cup of Nations title. Belgium will now face the United States in the last eight.
