The Chelsea star Ian Wright wishes Arsenal had signed

Robin Bairner

• 26 Feb 2024 07:55 GMT
• 3 min read

Arsenal have little reason to be jealous of Chelsea at present, but club legend Ian Wright has found one.

The Blues’ scattergun approach of signing expensive young players was questioned following their 1-0 loss to Liverpool in the Carabao Cup final on Sunday, yet Mauricio Pochettino’s side do have one player who has been a resounding success.

Cole Palmer has shone for Chelsea since joining in August from Manchester City, and Wright is envious that Arsenal were unable to land the 21-year-old.

“I wish we did,” he said when asked if he would like to have seen Arsenal sign Palmer in the summer. “I don’t want to say who I’d have had him in for, but I’d have loved to have had Cole Palmer.

“I heard someone saying something that he’s like Riyad Mahrez, but he’s not that player; he has so much more.”

Pochettino backs Palmer to replicate World Cup winner

Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino believes that Palmer can be his side’s answer to Angel Di Maria, the Argentine World Cup winner.

“In the position that he plays, and because he’s a left-footer and because he has some similarities and the quality, he’s a potential Angel Di Maria,” he told TNT Sports.

“Angel is a world champion, he was at PSG with us, and is an amazing player.

“Palmer has the capacity and the potential to be close to him, with time. He’s still far away, but this type of player that can link, can be a playmaker, have the capacity to score, assist, it’s this type of player like Angel.”

Palmer played 41 times for Manchester City before completing a €47 million (£40m) move to Stamford Bridge in the summer.

Since then, he has scored 12 times and created nine goals in 30 appearances in all competitions, making him undoubtedly one of the signings of the season.

Palmer’s Expected Transfer Value (ETV) has risen to €32m after establishing himself as a starter at Chelsea, where he is under contract until 2030.