FROM STAMFORD BRIDGE – When Chelsea’s players were put through their paces for the Premier League’s media day over the summer, a cheeky Cole Palmer made a point to those filming and photographing him.
When putting up three fingers to the camera in case he scored a hat-trick, he asked the directors if they wanted one with four as well.
By the time he had put four in the net against Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday, this clip had resurfaced and gone viral. Someone, somewhere was expecting Palmer’s prophecy to be fulfilled as the great man himself foresaw.
That’s life following the 22-year-old now. His rise has been meteoric beyond anyone’s wildest guesses, not least those at Manchester City, who even despite their near-infinite riches must be deeply regretting their decision to let him walk away from the Etihad Stadium so easily.
The records keep on tumbling for Palmer. His match-winning foursome against Brighton was the first time a Premier League player had scored that many in a first half. He now has the joint-most hat-tricks of any Chelsea footballer since breaking away from the Football League. In 53 games for the Blues, he has registered 31 goals and 19 assists.
It’s not as if Palmer’s brilliance has been restricted to exploits at Stamford Bridge either – he is one of only four men’s players to score for England in a major international final.
A Ballon d’Or nomination is a just reward for what he’s achieved over the last year, and though he won’t win in 2024, it’s not totally beyond the realms of possibility that he will get his hands on that golden ball one day.
The jump from stardom to superstardom cannot be far away for Palmer, who should now have his eyes set on becoming the Premier League’s best player and most recognisable face.
Hear me out.
The best player, at present, is Erling Haaland. That’s almost indisputable. Yet there is so little fanfare about Manchester City’s glory or his bonkers stats to go with it all.
The reasons for that are harsh. City aren’t as historically significant as their rivals, while Haaland’s machine-like rudimentary marries up with his team’s demolition of the competition. They may not be the story, but they are the best. Sometimes you can’t have it all.
Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah is still up there, but he suffers from a similar problem of providing more substance than style to get buy-in from the neutral.
Over at Arsenal, Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard have threatened to take hold of the metaphorical championship belt, though not quite enough to wrestle it off Haaland yet.
Chelsea and Palmer represent the perfect opposition.
The club are always a story, for better or worse. The player is always one of the best on any pitch he steps on, the notion around his penalty-reliance completely obliterated. He’s, phenomenally, even more than just the goals, with almost every pass forward and swing of the boot majestic and magical, either a chance created or an opposition player eliminated.
For Palmer to be the Premier League’s best, then Chelsea need to ensure this recent hot run of form is sustainable and they can compete for the title again.
Enzo Maresca appears to have found a settled core of players and is leaning on the relationships forged under Mauricio Pochettino last season to steer the attack.
The club’s erratic recruitment team cannot meddle with the first-team like a plaything for children. Money spent must lead to on-field results. Palmer must be given the platform to become the Premier League’s number-one star.
