John Obi Mikel claims he’s approached Chelsea forward Nicolas Jackson after an explosive falling out between them last year. Jackson hit out at Mikel in August 2024 after the Blues legend criticised his finishing ability, suggesting it wasn’t at the level required to be the main forward at Chelsea. “You need a striker who knows how to hit a ball in the back of the net and that’s what we don’t have,” Mikel said after Chelsea’s defeat to Manchester City on the opening weekend of last season. “I know I talk so much about him and sometimes I sound like I disrespect him. I don’t disrespect him. I think at Chelsea Football Club we need a top striker who can get us a goal.”The Senegal international hit out at Mikel in an X-rated social media post, telling him to ‘not talk s***’ about him.“@mikeljonobi shut your mouth, don’t talk s***, we are killing ourselves for Africa,” Jackson said in a furious Instagram post.Mikel then responded with comments reiterating his claims that his criticism was not meant personally and was only in the interest of seeing Chelsea succeed.And in an exclusive interview with talkSPORT.com, Mikel has revealed that he reached out to Jackson to talk things out in private.However, the player, who is now on loan at Bayern Munich with a view to moving permanently next summer, rebuffed this offer.Asked if there had been a private conversation with Jackson, Mikel said: “No, no. Listen, I wanted to have a private conversation, but he declined.“But fair enough, he didn’t want to speak to me.“There was nothing there. I just wanted to let him know, as a friend, as someone who played for the football club, just to have an honest conversation.”Jackson has 30 goals in 81 appearances for ChelseaGettyHe didn’t take too kindly to criticism from MikeltalkSPORTJackson has since joined Bayern last summer on an initial loan with an obligation to buy in a £70.3million deal next summerGetty‘We’re all good now’Over a year on from the incident, Mikel insists relations between him and Jackson are good despite the forward’s refusal to talk. The former midfielder insists that he rates Jackson highly as a footballer but just wanted to see him ‘polish’ his finishing in front of goal.“We’re all good now,” Mikel said. “Obviously he left the club… Listen, there was nothing there between me and Nicolas Jackson.“I was just saying the obvious. I like him as a player. People always talk about the negative, they never talk about what else I say.“He’s a fantastic player, he’s a brilliant player. His link-up play with Cole Palmer, his partnership with the team, the way he brings people into play, he links up really, really well. His pace, running in behind… they never talk about all that. “But he knows that he needed to polish that part of his game [finishing], improve that part of his game, of scoring goals, of finishing those chances that we created. So many chances, he knew that.Jackson helped Chelsea to Conference League glory last season. He also has a Club World Cup winners’ medal to his nameGetty“But sometimes the obvious is the obvious. And sometimes when I say it, it was there. He didn’t like it, obviously… everybody knows that it’s the truth. “It was just to help the team, it was just to make sure that the team succeeded. “Because the culture of the team is winning trophies, the culture of the team is winning games. And by winning games, you have to score goals.“And when you have the striker not doing it, then, I mean, you have to say it. You have to say it. And that’s what I said. “I had nothing against him, I said so many good things about him. I think he’s a brilliant player, obviously. Good luck to him in Bayern Munich now. “And you can see how Joao Pedro has come in, Liam Delap… unfortunately now he’s injured. But we’re scoring goals. We’re finishing those chances. And that’s what we need from football club.”GettyJackson has one goal and one assist in six appearances for Bayern Munich so far this season[/caption]Jackson joined Chelsea from Villarreal in the summer of 2023 in a £32million deal.He scored 17 goals (14 in the Premier League) in his first season at Stamford Bridge and netted 13 in all competitions last term. The 24-year-old picked up two trophies during his time at Chelsea, helping them to Conference League glory, scoring in the final against Real Betis.He also has a Club World Cup winners’ medal to his name, although he was sent off early in the tournament for poorly-timed challenge.Mikel was speaking to talkSPORT ahead of his Obi One Podcast live show with special guest John Terry in London on October 13.