'Cole Palmer is who Chelsea thought Kai Havertz would be'
Cameron Smith
- 10 Nov 2023 13:22 GMT
- 3 min read
Chelsea staff believe that Cole Palmer is the player they thought was arriving when Kai Havertz joined the club in 2020.
Havertz, now 24, signed for Chelsea for €80 million from Bayer Leverkusen, and although he scored the match-winning goal in the 2021 Champions League final, the Germany international failed to live up to expectations.
However, unnamed Chelsea backroom staff have told The Athletic that summer signing Palmer has displayed the quality they expected from Havertz when he joined.
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Palmer has netted three goals and four assists in 11 Chelsea appearances so far, while he has almost mustered more Premier League minutes this season (505) than in the entirety of the 2022-23 campaign for Manchester City (358).
The England U21 international cost Chelsea €47m on Transfer Deadline Day, but those around the club believe that fee has already proven to be a bargain, especially considering The Telegraph have reported that Palmer was signed as Havertz’s replacement, who joined Arsenal for €75m.
Not only did Chelsea earn money from swapping Havertz for Palmer, they arguably got the better player in return too, considering how their respective starts to the new season have gone.
READ MORE: 'He's like Bergkamp' - Arsenal legend gushes over new Chelsea star
Havertz has one goal and one assist in 18 games for Arsenal, while Palmer has quickly become Chelsea’s most important attacker.
Palmer’s Chelsea efforts not going unnoticed
Despite not making his first Chelsea start until October, Palmer has arguably been Chelsea’s best player this year, with his impact from the right wing not to be sniffed at. He has provided a level of creativity missing before and he is already a key figure in the squad, as seen by the fact he is on penalty duty.
Furthermore, Palmer’s dedication to making his move to Chelsea work has impressed Mauricio Pochettino and the rest of the Blues’ backroom staff.
According to The Telegraph, Palmer “wants to try to learn Spanish in a bid to communicate even better with some of his Chelsea team-mates and staff.”
Pochettino, Thiago Silva, Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez are among the Spanish speakers at Stamford Bridge and Palmer is said to be keen on aiding his ability to communicate with them.
Furthermore, as per The Telegraph, Palmer “has enquired about using a chef at his home to help him to learn to cook and eat the right food, rather than relying on the club to solely provide his meals or ordering takeaway while he is on his own.”
The signing of Palmer was somewhat mocked when he arrived, but the Englishman has already proved the critics wrong.
