Cole Palmer is reportedly ‘unsettled’ at Chelsea and would consider rejoining Manchester City if Pep Guardiola leaves this summer.
Guardiola sanctioned Man City’s decision to offload Palmer back in 2023, with Chelsea paying £40m to bring the playmaker to Stamford Bridge.
Palmer was highly-rated by coaches at the Etihad Stadium but made just 19 league appearances for City before moving to west London.
To say Palmer hit the ground running at Chelsea would be an understatement, with the 23-year-old scoring 27 goals and making 15 assists during his first season with the Blues.
That prolific form led to Palmer being named Chelsea Players’ Player of the Season, the Chelsea Player of the Season, the Premier League Young Player of the Season and the PFA Fans’ Player of the Year.
Palmer’s incredible rise continued that summer as he made an impact at Euro 2024 despite not being a starter under Gareth Southgate, scoring England’s goal in the final defeat to Spain.
He has hardly gone missing over the past 18 months – scoring 19 goals in the Premier League alone – but a slight drop-off has been noted, not helped by more than one frustrating injury setback.
Get your football fix
Don’t want to miss the week’s biggest football stories? Metro’s exclusive football newsletter, In The Mixer, is your essential guide.
From the latest transfer rumours and managerial moves to analysis of the biggest games and a lot more, our experts have you covered.
Sign up here, it’s an open goal.
Palmer has started less than half of Chelsea’s league games this term and, according to The Sun, is ‘not particularly enjoying life down south’.
It is claimed Palmer is somewhat unsettled at Chelsea and homesick, having been born and raised in Manchester.
The Sun even say Palmer ‘could well be tempted’ to return to Manchester City should his former Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca succeed Guardiola.
Ex-City coach Maresca was being mooted as Guardiola’s replacement even before his departure from Chelsea and that speculation has only intensified since he left Stamford Bridge.
Despite joining Manchester City’s academy at the age of eight, Palmer grew up supporting Manchester United and the Red Devils have also been tentatively linked with the Chelsea superstar.
‘Could Mauricio Pochettino convince Cole Palmer to come to Manchester United? Only if Chelsea would be willing to let him go,’ Rene Meulensteen, who worked under Sir Alex Ferguson, told Casinostugan.
‘Palmer is a fantastic player and I think he would suit Manchester United really well and the way they should be playing because he is a difference maker. That’s always what you want.
‘You’d need to think about how he’s going to fit in because on that right-hand side, where Cole is playing to come into the pocket, obviously you can have Amad Diallo there too or Mbeumo. Bruno operates in the middle.
‘Palmer was a boyhood United fan and it’s actually too strange for words that United never picked up on it and made sure that they sounded him out about his plans if he ever were to leave City. It’s very strange that it never happened, in my opinion.’
Palmer was on the scoresheet in Chelsea’s 2-0 Premier League win over Brentford on Saturday but then missed Wednesday’s Champions League clash against Pafos.
Explaining Palmer’s absence prior to the 1-0 win, which was sealed by Moises Caicedo’s second-half header, new Blues boss Liam Rosenior said: ‘Cole felt a little bit of tightness in his thigh. He just misses out, but he should be absolutely fine for Sunday.
‘I’ve got to manage the squad as best as possible and make sure we are fit throughout the season with the sheer amount of games we’ve got in a short space of time.’
Palmer will hope to return to action on Sunday when Chelsea, currently sixth in the Premier League, visit London rivals Crystal Palace.
For more stories like this, check our sport page.
Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
