10. Cole Palmer

[Vesper 30,091]

Cole Palmer’s defensive diligence under Enzo Maresca deserves more acclaim

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5962502/2024/12/02/cole-palmer-off-ball-defensive-improvement/

A shimmy into the right half-space followed by a left-footed curler into the corner of the net.

Cole Palmer’s goal against Aston Villa on Sunday was the type he has scored several times since joining Chelsea last summer. These actions, along with consistency from the penalty spot and perfectly weighted passes, are what most fans and pundits would associate him with.

But what many do not see, especially in Palmer’s new role under Enzo Maresca, are his contributions when he does not have the ball.

On Sunday, Stamford Bridge saw the promising signs of Palmer proving his worth out of possession, and his defensive activity set up a 3-0 win after Nicolas Jackson’s seventh-minute opener.

The player dashboard for Cole Palmer on Sunday

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Villa’s build-up shape early on Sunday was a familiar one: Youri Tielemans and Boubacar Kamara dropped to the edge of their own box, with their centre-backs fanning wider and one of the full-backs offering support.

Chelsea countered Villa’s approach by going man-to-man in midfield with Enzo Fernandez and Palmer, while wingers Jadon Sancho and Pedro Neto stood ready to press Villa’s full-backs.

As seen above, Maresca tasked Palmer with marking Tielemans, who has been crucial to Villa’s build-up play. The Belgium international leads his team in the league in passes per 90 minutes into the attacking third (11.7) and progressive passes per 90 (5.1).

Tielemans ended Sunday’s match with four progressive passes and 10 passes into the attacking third but managed only one and three in the first half. Those numbers speak to the effectiveness of Palmer’s defensive work.

It was not without some initial hiccups, though. Here, within the opening 60 seconds, Tielemans was able to get away from Palmer and pass on the turn, with the move ending in a foul on the retreating Ollie Watkins.

It happened again from the resulting free kick as Tielemans passed out wide to Jaden Philogene, whose heavy touch allowed Fernandez to intervene and pass the ball back to Robert Sanchez.

On both occasions, Neto and Palmer seemed to miscommunicate on who to press. Before the second instance, Neto even signalled to Palmer to stay close to Tielemans.

Tielemans skipped away again in the sixth minute to find Morgan Rogers, who turned and ran at Chelsea’s defence, forcing a successful Levi Colwill recovery. Neto’s reaction to Tielemans finding space is noticeable…

After Jackson opened the scoring in the seventh minute, Palmer’s off-ball performance improved.

As Villa play the ball back to Emiliano Martinez from kick-off, notice how much tighter Palmer is to Tielemans. He also signals for Sancho to press higher.

This was important for Chelsea to establish control on and off the ball after scoring. With Palmer staying touch-tight to Tielemans when Villa built up from the back, the visitors needed one of their forwards to drop. This provided fewer options against Chelsea’s rest defence (the positioning of defenders in attack) of Wesley Fofana, Marc Cucurella and one of Colwill or Moises Caicedo, and resulted in more Villa turnovers.

Chelsea’s shape, as seen below, often meant Martinez was forced to go long, with only Watkins as a target.

Tielemans escaped Palmer’s clutches a couple of times higher up the pitch, but his impact was limited when Villa tried to build from the back, which contributed to turnovers in their half.

In the sequence below, Palmer left his assignment to press Martinez but decelerated to turn back and tackle Tielemans at the edge of Villa’s box. The resulting shot was saved by Martinez, but led to the rare sight of an indirect free kick in the box after Pau Torres touched the ball into Martinez’s arms. Martinez saved Palmer’s subsequent effort.

Even when Tielemans got to the ball ahead of Palmer, the Chelsea forward had ample support from team-mates operating behind him.

In this instance, Fernandez is watching Kamara closely, while Colwill and Romeo Lavia are tight to Rogers and John McGinn. Tielemans is forced to go long towards Watkins, but Cucurella is in a position to cut it out and get Chelsea moving forward again.

Once Chelsea went 2-0 up courtesy of Fernandez’s 36th-minute strike, Palmer could conserve energy as his team controlled possession. He was constantly scanning his surroundings to stay wary of Tielemans’ movement while growing more influential in attack.

In the example below, Palmer forces Tielemans to pass back and proceeds to press Martinez before retreating to close down Tielemans again. This, combined with Jackson, Sancho and Fernandez pushing Villa into a corner, forces Ezri Konsa to play a long pass, which Colwill wins.

Kamara picks up Colwill’s clearance and holds off three players and the ball is worked to Tielemans, with Palmer failing to stop the pass into the Belgian. This time, though, Neto takes it upon himself to win the ball back by outpacing Tielemans.

That was a sign that Tielemans and Kamara were starting to figure out how to navigate Chelsea’s press, but Villa’s final pass was often poor. Maresca’s ploy had clearly worked with Chelsea leading 2-0 and limiting Villa to three shots in the first half.

Unai Emery’s side grew in confidence after the break, but Palmer stayed tight to Tielemans, forcing him to pass back rather than forward.

The introduction of Ross Barkley, who provided freshness and forays forward, in place of Kamara in the 62nd minute helped Tielemans, who had more freedom as a single pivot against a tiring Chelsea.

Palmer took it upon himself to end the game with his goal in the 83rd minute before being replaced by Joao Felix.

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After the match, Maresca praised Palmer, saying he was “the reason people pay for tickets — Palmer can see things, like Joao Felix, that the rest cannot see”. Sunday’s performance, though, illustrated Chelsea’s ceiling when Palmer’s attacking output is complemented by his fledgling progress in out-of-possession situations.

Palmer made errors, which can be expected as he adapts to a deeper role with defensive responsibilities under Maresca. But when he erred, the rest of this constantly improving Chelsea side backed him up to ensure those mistakes were not costly.

This team, unlike last season, looks closer to being the sum of its expensive parts — and Palmer’s largely unheralded contributions without the ball are crucial.

[King Kante 1,643]

2 hours ago, Vesper said:

Cole Palmer’s defensive diligence under Enzo Maresca deserves more acclaim

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5962502/2024/12/02/cole-palmer-off-ball-defensive-improvement/

A shimmy into the right half-space followed by a left-footed curler into the corner of the net.

Cole Palmer’s goal against Aston Villa on Sunday was the type he has scored several times since joining Chelsea last summer. These actions, along with consistency from the penalty spot and perfectly weighted passes, are what most fans and pundits would associate him with.

But what many do not see, especially in Palmer’s new role under Enzo Maresca, are his contributions when he does not have the ball.

On Sunday, Stamford Bridge saw the promising signs of Palmer proving his worth out of possession, and his defensive activity set up a 3-0 win after Nicolas Jackson’s seventh-minute opener.

The player dashboard for Cole Palmer on Sunday

---

Villa’s build-up shape early on Sunday was a familiar one: Youri Tielemans and Boubacar Kamara dropped to the edge of their own box, with their centre-backs fanning wider and one of the full-backs offering support.

Chelsea countered Villa’s approach by going man-to-man in midfield with Enzo Fernandez and Palmer, while wingers Jadon Sancho and Pedro Neto stood ready to press Villa’s full-backs.

As seen above, Maresca tasked Palmer with marking Tielemans, who has been crucial to Villa’s build-up play. The Belgium international leads his team in the league in passes per 90 minutes into the attacking third (11.7) and progressive passes per 90 (5.1).

Tielemans ended Sunday’s match with four progressive passes and 10 passes into the attacking third but managed only one and three in the first half. Those numbers speak to the effectiveness of Palmer’s defensive work.

It was not without some initial hiccups, though. Here, within the opening 60 seconds, Tielemans was able to get away from Palmer and pass on the turn, with the move ending in a foul on the retreating Ollie Watkins.

It happened again from the resulting free kick as Tielemans passed out wide to Jaden Philogene, whose heavy touch allowed Fernandez to intervene and pass the ball back to Robert Sanchez.

On both occasions, Neto and Palmer seemed to miscommunicate on who to press. Before the second instance, Neto even signalled to Palmer to stay close to Tielemans.

Tielemans skipped away again in the sixth minute to find Morgan Rogers, who turned and ran at Chelsea’s defence, forcing a successful Levi Colwill recovery. Neto’s reaction to Tielemans finding space is noticeable…

After Jackson opened the scoring in the seventh minute, Palmer’s off-ball performance improved.

As Villa play the ball back to Emiliano Martinez from kick-off, notice how much tighter Palmer is to Tielemans. He also signals for Sancho to press higher.

This was important for Chelsea to establish control on and off the ball after scoring. With Palmer staying touch-tight to Tielemans when Villa built up from the back, the visitors needed one of their forwards to drop. This provided fewer options against Chelsea’s rest defence (the positioning of defenders in attack) of Wesley Fofana, Marc Cucurella and one of Colwill or Moises Caicedo, and resulted in more Villa turnovers.

Chelsea’s shape, as seen below, often meant Martinez was forced to go long, with only Watkins as a target.

Tielemans escaped Palmer’s clutches a couple of times higher up the pitch, but his impact was limited when Villa tried to build from the back, which contributed to turnovers in their half.

In the sequence below, Palmer left his assignment to press Martinez but decelerated to turn back and tackle Tielemans at the edge of Villa’s box. The resulting shot was saved by Martinez, but led to the rare sight of an indirect free kick in the box after Pau Torres touched the ball into Martinez’s arms. Martinez saved Palmer’s subsequent effort.

Even when Tielemans got to the ball ahead of Palmer, the Chelsea forward had ample support from team-mates operating behind him.

In this instance, Fernandez is watching Kamara closely, while Colwill and Romeo Lavia are tight to Rogers and John McGinn. Tielemans is forced to go long towards Watkins, but Cucurella is in a position to cut it out and get Chelsea moving forward again.

Once Chelsea went 2-0 up courtesy of Fernandez’s 36th-minute strike, Palmer could conserve energy as his team controlled possession. He was constantly scanning his surroundings to stay wary of Tielemans’ movement while growing more influential in attack.

In the example below, Palmer forces Tielemans to pass back and proceeds to press Martinez before retreating to close down Tielemans again. This, combined with Jackson, Sancho and Fernandez pushing Villa into a corner, forces Ezri Konsa to play a long pass, which Colwill wins.

Kamara picks up Colwill’s clearance and holds off three players and the ball is worked to Tielemans, with Palmer failing to stop the pass into the Belgian. This time, though, Neto takes it upon himself to win the ball back by outpacing Tielemans.

That was a sign that Tielemans and Kamara were starting to figure out how to navigate Chelsea’s press, but Villa’s final pass was often poor. Maresca’s ploy had clearly worked with Chelsea leading 2-0 and limiting Villa to three shots in the first half.

Unai Emery’s side grew in confidence after the break, but Palmer stayed tight to Tielemans, forcing him to pass back rather than forward.

The introduction of Ross Barkley, who provided freshness and forays forward, in place of Kamara in the 62nd minute helped Tielemans, who had more freedom as a single pivot against a tiring Chelsea.

Palmer took it upon himself to end the game with his goal in the 83rd minute before being replaced by Joao Felix.

---

After the match, Maresca praised Palmer, saying he was “the reason people pay for tickets — Palmer can see things, like Joao Felix, that the rest cannot see”. Sunday’s performance, though, illustrated Chelsea’s ceiling when Palmer’s attacking output is complemented by his fledgling progress in out-of-possession situations.

Palmer made errors, which can be expected as he adapts to a deeper role with defensive responsibilities under Maresca. But when he erred, the rest of this constantly improving Chelsea side backed him up to ensure those mistakes were not costly.

This team, unlike last season, looks closer to being the sum of its expensive parts — and Palmer’s largely unheralded contributions without the ball are crucial.

Still not convinced this is the right idea. For me, Felix can do the donkey work side and Palmer should be given a more luxury role out on the right. I am not normally a fan of giving someone such a role but when they're as incisive and clinical as Cole, it is actually kind of mental to tell him to do the donkey work and take him away from the attacking third. Especially as Felix also operates to a high level doing that graft side. 

Edited December 4, 2024 by King Kante

[Magic Lamps 11,692]

8 hours ago, King Kante said:

Still not convinced this is the right idea. For me, Felix can do the donkey work side and Palmer should be given a more luxury role out on the right. I am not normally a fan of giving someone such a role but when they're as incisive and clinical as Cole, it is actually kind of mental to tell him to do the donkey work and take him away from the attacking third. Especially as Felix also operates to a high level doing that graft side. 

It depends. If palmer is on the right, he can not really stop short of tracking back and chipping in to defend. This would make the team lopsided and disorganised against the ball. As a no. 10 he might get away with it when you have a striker as industrious as Jackson. 
I did not really like Felix and palmer in the same lineup tbh. We looked much better vs villa than vs Leicester as a consequence. Palmer is tailor made for that role in the box midfield. Fernandez joins him to have another ball distributor in attack, while Two proper wingers  stretch the opposing defense 

[Vesper 30,091]

How Cole Palmer dominates games – whatever position he plays in

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5980716/2024/12/09/cole-palmer-Chelsea-panenka-penalty/

Considering he boasted a 100 per cent success rate from his 11 previous penalty kicks and is renowned for being completely unfazed in pressure situations, it was perhaps no surprise that Cole Palmer pulled off a Panenka from the spot in Chelsea’s 4-3 victory over Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday.

That goal means Palmer now has the “best” 100 per cent penalty conversion rate in the Premier League era, with all 12 converted, including his first Panenka, against Burnley in March. It also means he’s on 17 goal involvements in the top flight this season — only Mohamed Salah of Liverpool has more (21).

As former England forward Paul Merson pointed out in his post-match analysis of the Spurs game on UK broadcaster Sky Sports, Palmer’s performance level this season is perhaps even more impressive than in his excellent 2023-24 debut year at Chelsea, because opponents now know about his quality, and he’s a marked man. Despite being the obvious player for their opponents to concentrate on, Palmer keeps providing decisive contributions.

So, how does he do it?

For Chelsea’s first game of the season, a 2-0 home defeat against his previous club Manchester City, Palmer started on the right. This wasn’t particularly successful — not only was his contribution in an attacking sense minimal, City also seemed keen to exploit the space behind him. A 2-0 loss to the champions was hardly disastrous in head coach Enzo Maresca’s first game in charge, but it prompted a re-think before Chelsea’s next match, a trip to Wolves.

GO DEEPER

Chelsea are no longer 'Cole Palmer FC' - his marked-man status is forcing others to step up

For that game, Enzo Fernandez moved from the N0 10 position to a deeper role, Noni Madueke came into the side on the right, and Palmer was used centrally. This worked perfectly, with Palmer teeing up Madueke three times in the second half, only the fifth time the same player has assisted each goal in a Premier League hat-trick.

Since then, Palmer has always been used in that central No 10 — on paper, at least.

That’s the interesting thing about Palmer’s displays. Although used as a No 10, he’s barely ever played in the zones you’d expect from somebody with that role, as the heat map below from his 15 Premier League appearances this season shows.

Only in one match, against Nottingham Forest on October 6, was he primarily positioned centrally, and between the lines. More regularly, he plays in an inside-right position, akin to how Martin Odegaard operates for Arsenal. His displays against Liverpool and Aston Villa are particularly notable in that respect.

But often, Palmer does something completely different.

Note, for example, his positioning in the ninth game of the season, against Newcastle, where he barely touches the ball on the right side of the pitch — which was the complete opposite of how he’d played against West Ham in match five.

Another outlier came in the sixth game, when Palmer’s touch map is more what you would expect of a right-back than that of a No 10. This was deliberate. Against a Brighton side playing a high defensive line, he repeatedly strolled across to the right touchline, received a forward pass from the defence, and then flipped the ball over the opposition first-time for runners to get in behind.

It created this situation, with three Chelsea players through on goal:

And this one, where Nicolas Jackson rounded goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen but couldn’t turn the ball in:

It was, of course, a pre-determined approach. “The manager had a game plan,” Palmer told the BBC afterwards. “We knew how to attack them, with first-time passes, as their line was so high.” But the extraordinary thing about Palmer’s performance was that despite effectively playing as a right-back because he was primarily charged with creating chances for others, he smashed in four goals before half-time. One was a penalty, and another was a free kick, but Palmer is capable of deciding games even when he’s playing a long way from the opposition goal.

That’s another interesting thing about Palmer’s game.

In terms of combined goals and assists, he is alongside Salah and Bukayo Saka of Arsenal in the top three. Usually, a key part of contributing in terms of goals and assists is receiving the ball in dangerous positions in the first place. Salah and Saka are also in the top three in the Premier League in terms of receiving Opta-defined progressive passes.

GO DEEPER

Cole Palmer's defensive diligence under Enzo Maresca deserves more acclaim

But Palmer, in stark contrast, doesn’t make the top 50.

In other words, he is not a specialist at positioning himself to receive dangerous passes. He either comes short to receive simple passes and then plays outrageous balls for team-mates, like his sublime around-the-corner ball for Pedro Neto against Newcastle, which teed up Jackson for the opener, or he lets others receive the good forward passes and receives simpler ones higher up.

When Chelsea do look to play forward passes to a player between the lines, it’s often to Jackson coming short, who then feeds Palmer. This ‘goal’ against Newcastle was offside, but it showed their intentions:

 

Therefore, Palmer is the complete opposite of someone like Mason Mount, effectively his predecessor in this role at Chelsea.

Mount was sometimes criticised for not being overly creative, nor expressive with his final ball. But in 2021-22, he was joint-sixth in the Premier League in terms of combined goals and assists. Mount’s secret was not the quality of his final ball, but the fact he was so adept at positioning himself to receive progressive passes — he was seventh in the league by that measure in that season. Salah and Saka, incidentally, were the top two.

But Palmer isn’t that sort of player at all.

He is a No 10 on paper, but he spends most of his time coming very short, into zones where opponents aren’t inclined to follow, before playing killer passes from deep. On other occasions, he sprints into the channels to provide a goal threat, or he waits for others to collect forward passes, and then receives simple balls to feet.

In a way, opponents are actually quite successful at preventing him receiving the ball between the lines — but that’s not enough to stop him dominating games.

[NikkiCFC 8,285]

Doesn't care about City 😆

 

[Vesper 30,091]

new valuation for Cole

now rated at 130m euros

[NikkiCFC 8,285]

Saka having bigger value is a joke. 

[Vesper 30,091]

On 29/12/2024 at 23:19, NikkiCFC said:

Saka having bigger value is a joke. 

worse is FODEN also being valued higher

one league goal, one league assist in almsot 1000 league minutes this season

at least Saka has great stats this season (but now is is injured, out until March)

 

[Fulham Broadway 17,299]

Rio Ferdinand brands Chelsea star Cole Palmer ‘rude’ and ‘out of order’ after Bournemouth goal

He isnt, and he turns up for drug tests unlike wonky lips

[Vesper 30,091]

2 minutes ago, Fulham Broadway said:

Rio Ferdinand brands Chelsea star Cole Palmer ‘rude’ and ‘out of order’ after Bournemouth goal

why?

[Fulham Broadway 17,299]

27 minutes ago, Vesper said:

why?

Just because he dummied the keeper and put him on his arse. he said that behaviour should be left in the schoolyard. 

 

[Vesper 30,091]

26 minutes ago, Fulham Broadway said:

Just because he dummied the keeper and put him on his arse. he said that behaviour should be left in the schoolyard. 

 

that is a the fucking stupidest thing I have heard all season

you score goals ANYWAY YOU CAN

does that thick twat know how many times Messi, Pele, Maradona, etc put keepers on their arses?????

 

[robsblubot 3,595]

1 hour ago, Fulham Broadway said:

Just because he dummied the keeper and put him on his arse. he said that behaviour should be left in the schoolyard. 

 

That was the correct finish; Jackson weighted assist was so good that there was no need for a first touch, so he had the time to do fake/dummy shot and then calmly apply the finish.

Seen it done many times (pretty common in PK) and it can be very effective esp against quick and agile goalies (Bournemouth goalie was very good in that game).

[Fulham Broadway 17,299]

5 hours ago, Vesper said:

that is a the fucking stupidest thing I have heard all season

you score goals ANYWAY YOU CAN

does that thick twat know how many times Messi, Pele, Maradona, etc put keepers on their arses?????

 

Exactly what I thought. How many times has Messi dummied to score...Ronaldinho against us...to my mind there's not enough of it

[NikkiCFC 8,285]