Why cool Cole is most destructive on right wing

MADE in Manchester, Cole Palmer could easily have stayed at home with the best team in the world, a club who can practically guarantee their players a glut of trophies. Instead, he had the confidence to score in the Community Shield and Super Cup at the start of this season and then tell City: let me leave because I deserve to be playing week in, week out. Watching him for Chelsea, you can see why he insisted he was ready. This 21-year-old is an immense talent. He is cool, classy and measured, with a little maverick in him, and determined to prove why he deserves to represent England at Euro 2024. Phil Foden was patient enough to wait but Palmer wanted to be fast-tracked and for all those at City who nurtured him, it will be tough seeing him strutting his stuff in a Chelsea shirt. That is why I did not want Arsenal to sell Nicolas Anelka at the age of 20 in 1999. I’d spent nearly three years watching him develop into an attacker who could destroy Premier League defences, including the season he helped us do the double, but he wanted a new challenge. Though I was sorry to see him go, I wanted it to work for Anelka at Real Madrid, and I hope Palmer can continue to thrive at Chelsea. They are a club who got used to winning trophies over the last 20 years and in this starlet, they have someone who can bring those good times back. He has been used in a variety of positions but the right wing is where he is most destructive, moving inside on to his left foot to open up the pitch while the overlapping Malo Gusto flies down the flank in support. Opposition full backs can try to force Palmer down the line but much like the best inverted wingers, he will often find his way inside. That sees him step closer to Conor Gallagher, the heartbeat of this Chelsea team playing at No 10. Gallagher has tidied up his game. His passing is now much more precise and he is showing greater composure in front of goal. The FA Cup is of huge importance to Chelsea, a competition that could secure them European football if they can go all the way. If and when Palmer finally secures his first silverware with this team, it will bring him great satisfaction after playing such a pivotal role in clinching it. Leicester’s top priority is getting back to the Premier League but they should field a strong side tomorrow, knowing they do not have another game before the international break. It is their wingers who could do the worst damage to Chelsea. Stephy Mavididi is a former Arsenal youth I’ve enjoyed watching develop from afar — and he is due a goal after a slow start to 2024 — while Abdul Fatawu scored a superb goal against Bournemouth in the last round. Unfortunately the evergreen Jamie Vardy, 37 years young, is injured and Leicester will miss his pace on the counter-attack.