Chelsea Beckoned For Cole Palmer And Now England Does Too

LONDON, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 06: Cole Palmer of Chelsea celebrates as Nicolas Jackson of Chelsea (not ... [+] pictured) scores the team's second goal during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea FC at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on November 06, 2023 in London, England. (Photo by Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images)

The 2023/24 season was pencilled in as the year Cole Palmer would make his breakthrough. The year he went from a promising young player to a regular starter.

This progress was expected to take place at his boyhood club Manchester City but instead, it is taking place in the English capital at Chelsea FC.

London beckoned, less about money and more about playing time. It was time for Palmer to take a chance, stop stalling and make a name for himself.

“Cole arrived [in the first team] and accepted some processes and then after one or two years said ‘No, I don’t want to play here, I am not going to play.’” City manager Pep Guardiola revealed last week.

“But I said ‘Riyad [Mahrez] is leaving so you are going to get a chance here.’

“He said ‘No, I am not going to play here, I want to leave,’ so I said ‘OK, leave’.

“He got what he wanted. It is good for him. He is a young player, a huge talent, otherwise he would not have been here. He is a nice lad and is doing really well.”

In his first game against his former club, 20-year-old Palmer showed exactly why he made the move.

He has been given more responsibility at Chelsea and has already played more Premier League minutes in nine appearances for the West London club than he did during his years with City.

He has started Chelsea’s last eight games in all competitions, playing the full 90 minutes in the most recent three games in the Premier League, including Sunday’s big game against City.

The responsibility extends to penalty taking duties, and he stepped up in a pressure situation to tie the game at 4-4.

He doesn’t practice them, he said, but despite a long delay and a ruckus around the penalty spot, on top of the old club narrative and the chance to level the scores in the 95th minute, Palmer held his nerve and dispatched an unsavable penalty past one of the best goalkeepers in the world, Ederson.

“I felt confident, I’ve had a few [penalties] now,” Palmer told Sky Sports after the game.

“I kept focused. I won’t say I work on penalties, because I don’t. I just trust my ability.”

Palmer floats between a starting position on the right and a No 10 role as a playmaker in the middle of the field.

These positions he takes up are reflected in his 2023/24 Premier League season heatmap so far, from Sofascore.

Cole Palmer season heatmap - Premier League 2023/24

Now England beckons too, and this week he has been moved from the under-21 squad to the senior squad for Euro 2024 qualifiers against Malta and North Macedonia along with former City teammate Rico Lewis.

“I think he’s a clever guy who adapts really quickly,” Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino said of Palmer.

“We are building a team and he was quick to see the situation, take it, show character and personality, and then good performances.

“He didn’t play too much at City. We are two different clubs with different ambitions and objectives. Maybe Chelsea fits really well for Cole.”

So far it appears Palmer fits Chelsea just as much as they fit him.

The move to London has paid off, and this weekend he was able to show his importance by helping his new side take points from his old one.

Palmer will now be hoping to continue this progress and make the same kind of impact on the international stage for an England team that already has some promising potential world-beaters.

His club performances with Chelsea so far this season suggest he could fit right in among them.