Micah Richards believes Chelsea have sold an ‘absolutely amazing’ player (Photo: YouTube) Micah Richards has backed one of the players sold by Chelsea last summer to become ‘one of the top strikers in Europe’. There was great upheaval at Stamford Bridge over the summer as Xabi Alonso rebuilt the squad, with a whopping 20 players leaving permanently or on loan. One such player was Nicolas Jackson, who moved to Aston Villa in a deal worth an initial £47.5million, which could rise to £65m. That’s despite the Senegal striker recording an impressive 30 goals and 12 assists in 81 games for the Blues, winning the Conference League and Club World Cup. Sign up for In The Mixer, Metro's football newsletter Get exclusive analysis and previews of the biggest games every Friday. Sign up now for free. He was exiled by Enzo Maresca last year and loaned to Bayern Munich, a move that backfired greatly on Chelsea as his direct replacement Liam Delap flopped and the club slumped to 10th in the table. It was thought Jackson might make a comeback under Alonso, but the new manager did not give him a chance, a decision that Richards suggests might come back to haunt him. ‘I’m going to say something quite controversial: I think Jackson is absolutely amazing,’ the Manchester City icon said on The Rest is Football. Nicolas Jackson joined Aston Villa in a deal worth up to £65m (Photo: Getty) ‘Chelsea didn’t keep him. He goes to Bayern. Obviously, he’s not going to play ahead of Harry Kane. ‘But watch his hold up play. Watch his movement. It’s just that little bit at the end, that composure. ‘Everyone’s just fascinated with stats and goals or assists or whatever. But if you actually use your eyes to watch the game, he’s got so much ability on the ball. Jackson won the Conference League and Club World Cup at Chelsea (Photo: Getty) ‘His touch around the corner, his awareness when to run in behind, when to drop deep, link up. He’s got everything. ‘If he could work on just finishing, that composure when he gets into that final third, I think he could be one of the top strikers in Europe. That’s how highly I rate him. ‘His debut season at Chelsea, he got 14 Premier League goals. In your first season, at a club that’s going through change, and he came to Chelsea when he was 22, that’s not a bad number.’ Has Xabi Alonso made a big transfer mistake? (Photo: Getty) Richards comments come after Jackson bagged his first Villa goal in a Champions League win at Club Brugge. He can help get the Villans’ Premier League campaign up and running on Saturday when they host Nottingham Forest. The 25-year-old has a tough task on his hands replacing Ollie Watkins, but Gary Lineker ‘totally agrees’ with Richards that he has the potential to make it to the top. ‘It’s raw talent and it’s just whether you can turn that into consistent ability to finish,’ the England legend said. ‘He gets a little bit excited in front of goal and that is obviously the most important thing. ‘He’s quick, he can hold it, he moves well. It’s just that final thing, but that is also the most important thing. You’ve got to have a calmness to you in front of goal but it’s good start for him.’ For more stories like this, check our sport page. Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Comment now Comments Add Metro as a Preferred Source on Google Add as preferred source