Cole Palmer continued his hot streak by scoring 4 goals against Everton in Chelsea’s 6-0 win at Stamford Bridge. He became the first Chelsea player since Didier Drogba to score hat-tricks in two consecutive home games. His performance against the Toffees has taken his goal tally in the Premier League to 20 goals, which is on par with Manchester City’s Erling Haaland.
The England international now has 29 goal involvements in the Premier League. He has been Chelsea’s best player and one of the only positives in a rather disappointing season for the Londoners. Although the Blues were able to demolish Everton 6-0, there was an incident that highlighted this season for Chelsea.
Despite taking a comfortable 4 goal lead going into halftime, Chelsea were hungry for more. They kept going at Everton and in an attempt at doing that were able to win a penalty in the 61st minute. Cole Palmer has been the penalty taker for Chelsea throughout this season. He is yet to miss it from the spot and it was not for debate that he should have been the man to take it. However, Noni Madueke and Nicolas Jackson felt otherwise and began arguing about who among them was going to take the penalty, while Palmer was still on the floor.
Pochettino officially announces Cole Palmer as the penalty taker
The spat between Madueke and Jackson seemed pointless, but with the Blues 4-0 up both these youngsters wanted to add to their goal tally for the season. However, captain Conor Gallagher stepped in and took both of them aside to allow Cole Palmer to take the penalty. The 21-year-old converted from the spot and gave the Blues a five-goal cushion at home.
The 6-0 win was one of Chelsea’s best performances of the season, but the penalty incident showcased the lack of maturity in the younger players at the club. In the post-game press conference, manager Mauricio Pochettino addressed the situation. He said, “It’s so clear and I made clear to them and through you, to the fans and to everyone that Cole Palmer is the taker, and then if Palmer wants to give it to another he can. But not in this way. It is a sad situation that happened and we have all agreed it cannot happen again.”
This was not the first time that the Chelsea players disputed over a penalty kick. Earlier this season, Raheem Sterling and Noni Madueke tried to take over the responsibility from Cole Palmer. If it was not clear earlier, Pochettino has certainly made it clear now that Palmer is the official penalty taker.
Cole Palmer showed a lot of maturity in handling the situation
Cole Palmer has time and again proven this season that he is one of the best young players in the Premier League. His four-goal performance against Everton helped him get a lot of praise from fans and pundits around the world. His ability on the field is splendid, but there is another aspect of his personality that is making him a fan favourite at Chelsea.
The 21-year-old has shown a lot of maturity since being signed by the club. Despite his efforts, the Blues are placed ninth in the standings. He could very well throw his teammates under the bus, but Palmer has not once done that. Earlier this season, former player Tim Sherwood put the England international in a tough spot by questioning the abilities of some of his teammates. Palmer calmly handled the situation and gave a befitting reply which showcased the maturity that he possesses.
Even after the game against Everton, Palmer was asked about the spat between his teammates. The 21-year-old gave the most perfect response in his interview with Sky Sports, he said, “I think we are showing everyone is wanting to take responsibility it may be a bit over the top, but everyone wants to win – we are laughing and joking about it.”
