Cole Palmer possesses the “X-factor” to lead Chelsea to a Premier League title, says Paul Merson, while Jamie Carragher thinks he could become one of Chelsea’s “greatest ever.”
Chelsea fought back from two goals down to win 4-3 at London rivals Tottenham to close the gap on Premier League leaders Liverpool to four points.
Palmer kept his nerve at key moments to score twice from the penalty spot as he became the first player in Premier League history to score 12 consecutive spot kicks.
The England star also provided the assist for Enzo Fernandez, meaning no player in the Premier League has registered more goal involvements since the start of last season than Palmer’s tally of 50.
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Enzo Maresca wrote off Chelsea’s title chances claiming that they’re far from the finished product, joking that ‘Arsenal, Manchester City and Liverpool wouldn’t slip like Marc Cucurella’
“He’s phenomenal,” said Merson.
“No one really knew much about him when he came from Man City, so it was a free hit for him. But in the last seven months, he’s now the big boy.
“The name of the game for opposition is to stop Cole Palmer. Teams are trying to stop him – and they can’t do it. That shows you how good he is. He’s too intelligent. He’s always got space. Everybody needs an X-factor to win a Premier League title and Chelsea have it with him.”
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Highlights of the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea.
Chelsea are now into third favourites with the bookmakers to win the Premier League and are shorter in the betting than Manchester City. Enzo Maresca has got his team ahead of where many people had predicted Chelsea would be this season as the win at Spurs was their 14th win from their last 20 Premier League encounters.
Carra: Palmer on the same level as Hazard
Palmer’s influence has been huge in getting Chelsea to challenge towards the top, according to Carragher.
He said: “When you think of Chelsea’s flair players like Gianfranco Zola and Eden Hazard, I think Palmer has done more in 18 months than Zola did and Zola is one of Chelsea’s greatest ever players.
“He’s on the same level as Hazard and that came over four or five years.
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Chelsea stars past and present, Gianfranco Zola and Cole Palmer, decide who has the best first touch, the best skills, best free-kick taker and more!
“If he takes Chelsea to a title then he’d go down as one of their greatest ever players if he keeps doing what he’s doing. He’s a special player.
“This Chelsea team is no underdog story. This is a team that has spent £1.2bn but what they’re doing this season is something totally unexpected. This club are right in the mix for a title challenge.”
Maresca: Palmer is not a normal player
Chelsea head coach Maresca understands Palmer’s talent and potential better than most having coached the forward as he came up through the ranks at former club Manchester City.
Asked after the win over Spurs whether he thinks Palmer can now be regarded as the best player in the Premier League, Maresca said: “Cole belongs to that kind of player, they are not normal players, they are top players.
“And top players, they do things that normal players or us say ‘how can he do that?’, it’s because he’s Cole, because he’s top. We can expect this from Cole.
“I had Cole for one year four years ago, so I know him from then. When he was with me in the U23s, he was in one way, and now, he is exactly the same guy. Lovely, humble, no strange things and this is the best thing for young players.
Asked what he thought of Palmer’s ‘Panenka’ spot-kick, Maresca replied: “The second penalty…he’s cold!”
