20. Cole Palmer

[Vesper 28,888]

Cole Palmer not keen on Manchester City return

https://thehardtackle.com/transfer-news/2024/10/22/cole-palmer-not-keen-on-manchester-city-return/

Cole Palmer has no intention of leaving Chelsea for a sensational return to Manchester City. He’s keen to stay and shine at Stamford Bridge. 

According to Football Insider, Cole Palmer has no interest in a return to Manchester City despite recent links. The £130,000-a-week Chelsea star wants to repay the club’s faith in his talents and is also tied to Stamford Bridge for the next nine years. 

Cole Palmer’s top performances this season and last have prompted the conversation about whether Manchester City regrets letting him leave. The attacking midfielder left the Premier League champions in search of regular game time, and Chelsea did not hesitate to pay what was required to get him on board. 

So far, the move from Chelsea has been a masterstroke, with Palmer becoming their leading man. Despite his young age, his star status is rather fitting considering the numbers he has put up since making the move, which was also rewarded with a contract extension and an increase in his salary. 

The £130,000-a-week Chelsea star has a deal here until 2033, which is nine years from now. However, there are stories linking Manchester City with the attacking midfielder, with suggestions that his former side would like him back to potentially replace Kevin De Bruyne. 

De Bruyne has strong links to Saudi Arabia ahead of his contract expiration next summer, which has led to speculation that Manchester City would like to re-sign Palmer. However, the £130,000-a-week Chelsea star has no interest in moving back to the Etihad and is instead keen to shine as a Chelsea player. 

Palmer wants to repay Chelsea’s faith

A recent report suggested that Chelsea are uninterested in selling Palmer to Manchester City or any other side, and only a ‘world record’ offer could test their resolve. The possibility of mancehster City paying a fee upwards of £200 million would not be seen as ideal, and would even make their decision to sell Palmer look bad. 

In any case, Palmer has no interest in leaving Chelsea, as he’s keen to repay the club’s faith when he wasn’t given a chance at Manchester City. Hence, the Blues fans can now relax, as Palmer is not leaving anytime soon and will grace Stamford Bridge for a long time to come. 

[bigbluewillie 1,859]

I'd like to know where this rumour generated from?

Why has there even been a response from Cool>

There's no chance we're going to sell him, even if we did I would never support Chelsea again....i'd fuck off and support Millwall.

[Reddish-Blue 2,348]

2 hours ago, bigbluewillie said:

I'd like to know where this rumour generated from?

Well...KDB was interested in a move elsewhere to finish his career, Saudi offered him huge money and City will need someone to fill that playmaker role..

You put everything together and the easiest headline is: "City want Palmer back" 😆

[Fulham Broadway 16,869]

Ex-England coach Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink has paid tribute to ‘exceptional talent’ Cole Palmer and says the Chelsea star only has ‘one weakness’.

‘Cole Palmer is among the best players in the world when he’s in the zone, whatever he tries to do works,’ Hasselbaink told BoyleSports.

‘He plays on feeling and it’s working. He’s an exceptional player. He’s an exceptional talent. He doesn’t need a lot of maintenance and he just wants to play football. 

‘He reminds me of a street footballer from back in the day, I was afraid that they were going out of the game but he has brought that back.

The only weakness you can say he has is heading the ball, but he can pass, score, assist and take free-kicks. He is exceptional.’ 

[Vesper 28,888]

The cult of ‘Cold Palmer’ has reached America – can he become a global brand?

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5850091/2024/10/23/cole-palmer-brand-america-celebration/

Cole Palmer is having quite a season.

Six goals in the eight Premier League matches, plus five assists. He has also been awarded the Premier League’s player of the month for September and England men’s player of the year for 2023-24.

Of the many signings made by Chelsea since the Behdad Eghbali-Todd Boehly consortium bought the club in May 2022 — spending more than £1billion ($1.3bn at current exchange rates) along the way — Palmer has been the greatest bargain. At £42.5m from boyhood club Manchester City on deadline day in September last year, he has been key to the London side’s transformation back into top-four contenders having finished 12th in 2022-23.

Now Palmer’s influence is spreading beyond the pitch, helped by a few factors: his terrific form, certainly, but also some quirks of his personality that lend themselves to social media traction, as well as his distinctive goal celebration and the nickname which comes with it.

Two recent events have illustrated the possibility of Palmer establishing himself beyond the confines of European football.

One came during the NFL’s promotion of the Minnesota Vikings-New York Jets game in London this month, when they could have turned to any Premier League player to help publicise it but chose Palmer. In a video posted on Instagram, Justin Jefferson, a star wide receiver for the Vikings known for his ‘griddy’ touchdown dance, held up a ‘Palmer 20’ Chelsea shirt and mimicked the England forward’s ‘cold’ goal celebration. It has more than 270,000 likes.

The other was when Trae Young, a point guard for the Atlanta Hawks and an NBA All-Star who happens to perform the same celebration as Palmer, was asked about sharing it with him. Young — who is nicknamed ‘Ice Trae’, hence the ‘cold’ move — talked about Palmer and the origins of the celebration, which was also recently mimicked by Gleyber Torres, a baseball player for the New York Yankees, who just qualified for the 2024 World Series.

“I hear he (Palmer) is a pretty good player,” Young told Podcast P. “I just did it. I kind of ran with it, I didn’t get it from nobody.”

Palmer, however, did get it from someone. Speaking to UK newspaper The Telegraph last week, he said: “It’s a nod to my former Manchester City academy team-mate Morgan Rogers (now in the first team at Aston Villa). It symbolises joy, passion and hard determination for the game, plus it’s funny as it works well with my name. Everyone knows it’s my celebration. Lots of people might have done it, but everybody knows it is my celebration.”

Indeed, Palmer has made it his own, in the UK at least.

Misha Sher, a board director at the European Sponsorship Association, tells The Athletic: “Visual identity is very important. If you are Cole Palmer and you have a celebration, and you are scoring all the time, those moments are frequent, so he can reinforce that unique visual identity all the time.

“And because of how easily these things get picked up and shared, you are seeing NFL players and even kids in the playground copying the celebration. It’s quite simple, but it’s very powerful in the world of building a brand.”

His nickname, too, seems to lend itself to spreading, particularly among the young audience: to many people, Cole Palmer is ‘Cold Palmer’.

He is also funny, often unintentionally. Whether asking Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca why he is at their Cobham training ground or claiming not to know what is meant by AM and PM, viral clips of Palmer have endeared him to football fans and the wider public. It differentiates him and makes him more attractive than other players to businesses looking for help to sell products.

“There is no doubt that brands have their eye on him,” says Tim Crow, founder and CEO of Crow Business Services and an expert in sports marketing, tells The Athletic. “I have had a number of calls about him from clients.”

One brand to have already signed the 22-year-old Mancunian up is Burberry, the British luxury fashion house.

In the firm’s video below, Palmer, wearing a Burberry duffle coat, simply goes fishing. The England international walks into frame, sits down on a chair next to a rod, occasionally gets up and walks out of shot, only to sit back down, sometimes stretching out his legs, sometimes stroking his chin.

Not a word is said. The video lasts nine minutes and 34 seconds. It is very Cold Palmer.

---

But is he a global brand yet?

“Cole has elevated himself in the world of football with his performances, and he clearly has a personality,” continues Sher. “But it’s too early to make any judgements or predictions about him becoming a brand. That requires someone, over an extended period, to have appeal outside of just the sport they play.

“The fact that he is getting those types of opportunities with Burberry strengthens his case and his ability to expand into popular culture, but in the past few years we’ve had Marcus Rashford, Raheem Sterling and other footballers who have featured in high-profile campaigns because of their relevance in that moment in time.

“We have clearly not seen these guys go on to become brands, and that is a really important distinction to make. Becoming a brand is not easy, and it requires longevity of that kind of relevance over time.”

Palmer also advertised boohooMAN, a fast-fashion retail company, on his Instagram page, where he has five million followers. He is also a Nike athlete and did promotional work for Electronic Arts (EA) for its popular FC football video games.

On TikTok, where he has more than two million followers, a video of him advertising Toshiba got more than four million views. However, another of him putting his PFA (Professional Footballers’ Association — the players’ trade union in the UK) Young Player of the Year trophy for 2023-24 in a fridge — a play on ‘Cold Palmer’ — was watched 36 million times, indicating how much greater an audience response is when they feel the content is authentic.

“What’s really interesting about him is that it doesn’t come across as planned,” adds Sher. “I don’t think he would have sat back and worked out the whole ‘Cold Palmer’ thing, it has organically happened, and that’s why it has taken off. But it is only a start, so you need to take that momentum and relevance and popularity that he currently has and build on it.”

Palmer’s online reach will be music to potential commercial partners’ ears as they look to maximise exposure for their products, although it is not yet wide enough to start attracting the multi-million-pound deals reserved for football’s most marketable stars.

“Seven-figure deals are a small category and they tend to be reserved for athletes who have longevity and appeal across multiple markets,” says Sher. “To command those deals, you need to have relevance outside of your home market, unless you’re American because the advertising market is so big and the budget is so big (in America).”

Footballers who get the biggest deals include David Beckham, Kylian Mbappe and Jude Bellingham, Palmer’s England team-mate. All have shown a track record in transcending their native audience through their performances on the pitch. Playing for Real Madrid, as all three of those do or did, helps too.

Bellingham, who is 13 months younger than Palmer but has been playing regularly at the top level for two years longer, has already featured in campaigns for designer label Louis Vuitton and modelled for Skims, a fashion brand owned by American celebrity Kim Kardashian, along with starring in Adidas adverts.

“Bellingham is playing for a huge club and in the Champions League, and that makes a huge difference,” adds Crow. “If someone like Adidas or Nike gets behind you and you get into the top tier of their campaigns, where you are featured in a global campaign, then that takes you to a whole other level and gets you noticed.”

 

Palmer has yet to achieve the commercial pull of England team-mate Bellingham (David Rogers/Getty Images)

---

Many athletes have been on the brink of transcending their sport and have broken into popular culture, only for their subsequent performance levels to hold them back.

Manchester United and England forward Rashford, who has released multiple best-selling books as well as leading a successful campaign to force the UK government into a policy change over free school meals for children during the Covid-19 pandemic, has since struggled to move beyond his sport and follow in former United and England star Beckham’s footsteps.

But in a world where top footballers tend to be trained by media advisors to always say the right thing, to never be controversial (to the point of being a bit dull, frankly), staying true to yourself is a lot harder than it looks, and if he can keep these performances going, that could be what helps Palmer achieve what others never quite did.

“I can count on the fingers on one hand, over a one-month period, how many genuinely interesting (footballer) interviews there are,” says Crow. “Football thrives on controversy, but the communications and PR business inside football exists to put the lid on it. That’s the dilemma.”

Jack Grealish, another of Palmer’s England team-mates and a former colleague at City, is a great example of getting it right. What you see tends to be what you get with the 29-year-old from Birmingham; a cheeky chappie-type of character who knows how to have a laugh at his own expense — and the brand deals, including one with fashion house Gucci, are rolling in.

Sher and Crow believe that retaining his public personality is going to be crucial for Palmer.

“You have to start with what is true and authentic because people can smell inauthenticity a mile off,” says Crow. “They (Palmer’s representatives) are going to have lots of offers, but you have to pick your partners carefully.

“Authenticity is so important and picking the wrong partner and having a bad advertisement can set you back, so it is really important that you choose your partners carefully. The most important thing is: you are only as good as your last performance.”

GO DEEPER

Was Cole Palmer meant to be this good? We asked those who watched him grow

 

Edited October 25 by Vesper

[Fulham Broadway 16,869]

The Englishman’s latest masterclass was watched by former Chelsea great Gianfranco Zola, who was pitchside at Stamford Bridge ahead of kick-off.

Palmer has been likened to the Italian magician but asked about those comparisons, he unsurprisingly admitted that he could not remember Zola’s heyday.

“I know he is an icon on Fifa so he must have been good!” Palmer said. “To be honest I didn’t really watch him play. Everyone says he was a great player, so thank you.”

On those comparisons, Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca said: "This is exactly what I was telling to you. I don't think Cole knows Gianfranco [laughs]. But they are, to be honest, quite similar in terms of quality. I'm from Italy, so I know Gianfranco quite well.

“I don't think we can compare both. The only thing I can say, Gianfranco was and Cole is still a quality player."

🤣 Come on Ice, can understand you not knowing the gooner Berkamp, but Gianfranco ? Really ?

[Stats 7,059]

On 25/10/2024 at 19:11, Fulham Broadway said:

Ex-England coach Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink has paid tribute to ‘exceptional talent’ Cole Palmer and says the Chelsea star only has ‘one weakness’.

‘Cole Palmer is among the best players in the world when he’s in the zone, whatever he tries to do works,’ Hasselbaink told BoyleSports.

‘He plays on feeling and it’s working. He’s an exceptional player. He’s an exceptional talent. He doesn’t need a lot of maintenance and he just wants to play football. 

‘He reminds me of a street footballer from back in the day, I was afraid that they were going out of the game but he has brought that back.

The only weakness you can say he has is heading the ball, but he can pass, score, assist and take free-kicks. He is exceptional.’ 

He scored a top header against Brighton though Jimmy 😄 but yeah, for a tall guy maybe he could work on being more of a threat aerially I guess.

[Fulham Broadway 16,869]

1 minute ago, Stats said:

He scored a top header against Brighton though Jimmy 😄 but yeah, for a tall guy maybe he could work on being more of a threat aerially I guess.

Its funny because Jimmy was well known for avoiding headers 🤣

[Strike 7,222]

This was mentioned somewhere this week. Cole is playing like a young KDB in attack - he can do everything. Assists, goals, game-breaking passes like the one for the first goal on Sunday. 

Losing KDB and Salah did hurt but it's good to get one back on City by signing their boy - who's already looking like a generational signing

[robsblubot 3,509]

There is a particular thing that I look for to identify a very special player (esp in attack): the first touch is not only used to control the football, but to start the next play.
Against Newcastle, Cole dribbled past players with his first touch alone. He often passes into space with his first touch, which makes him a nightmare to deal with given that the opposition cannot even foul him easily if the ball isn't there.

I think he has the potential to be better than KDB, but yeah only time will tell.

[Fulham Broadway 16,869]

Palmer is nearing fitness and could be available for Chelsea’s meeting with Arsenal on Sunday, according to head coach Enzo Maresca.

The 22-year-old was walking unaided at Stamford Bridge as he attended the team’s Conference League win over FC Noah on Thursday and was suffering no visible effect of the knee injury picked up against Manchester United at the weekend.

A decision will be taken on Saturday as to whether the England international plays against the Gunners, and Maresca said the signs he will be recovered in time were hopeful.

AP

[Vesper 28,888]

Cole Palmer says he needed persuading to join Chelsea from Manchester City

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5919438/2024/11/13/cole-palmer-Chelsea-man-city-transfer/

Cole Palmer says he needed persuading to join Chelsea from Manchester City last summer.

In an interview with British GQ, Palmer said his manager helped convince him to make the move to the west London club after he had decided he wanted to leave City. He has previously spoken about how initially only wanted to leave City on a season-long loan before returning to the first team, but was told he had to either leave permanently or remain at the club.

Palmer, 22, completed a move to Chelsea for a fee worth up to £42.5million (now $54.1m) on deadline day and enjoyed a hugely successful individual season, registering 25 goals and 15 assists in 46 games for his new club.

“I wasn’t even gonna go (to) Chelsea,” Palmer said. “I got persuaded.”

Discussions between the two clubs dragged on, Palmer says, leaving him anxious for updates even while training.

“Every time the ball went out I’d ask the kit man or the doctor if they’ve agreed the fee yet,” Palmer added before revealing he didn’t get the chance at a proper farewell .

“Most people went home,” he said. “I messaged the group chat, said, ‘Thanks and everything. I’m gone.’ That was it.”

GO DEEPER

Cole Palmer, the passer - and the man who makes Chelsea tick

After scoring England’s equalising goal in the European Championship final against Spain over the summer, Palmer has started this season in strong form again, contributing seven goals and five assists in Chelsea’s 11 Premier League matches.

Palmer signed a two-year contract extension before the new campaign started in August, with his deal at Chelsea now running until 2033.

Having come through their academy, the attacking midfielder previously made 41 appearances in all competitions for City, with only two of those Premier League starts, before joining Chelsea.

Palmer has withdrawn from the England squad for this month’s Nations League matches and will return to action when Chelsea travel to Leicester City on Saturday, November 23.

GO DEEPER

The cult of 'Cold Palmer' has reached America - can he become a global brand?

[Vesper 28,888]

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.

[King Kante 1,492]

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 19 hours ago by King Kante

[Magic Lamps 11,658]

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