Zola: Palmer can be best in the world
Chelsea legend Gianfranco Zola has been extremely impressed by Cole Palmer’s rise to superstardom and has challenged the Blues’ attacker to become the best player in the world.
Speaking at Leaders Week London, the Italian said, “He has the ability to entertain. He always produces good passes and very good assists. What I love about him is when he receives the ball he is always looking up and many times he has the pass in mind before he receives the ball. This is a quality only the big players have. I’m impressed.”
Since joining Chelsea, Palmer has racked up 44 goals and assists in just 40 Premier League games. He has more goal contributions than any other player in the league since the beginning of last season which has quickly turned him into a household name worldwide. His rise to the top has been quick, and it has even surprised Zola.
“I’m very impressed with Palmer because he’s doing amazing things and he has been doing amazing things from last season,” he added.
“He’s probably one of the players that has surprised me the most. I saw straight away that he had qualities, but I didn’t see all of this coming.”
Many believed Palmer’s form last season was a fluke and that he would be a ‘one season wonder’, but his performances this campaign have silenced any doubts around his quality. He has the most goal contributions in a domestic league this season among players in Europe’s top six Leagues, with six goals and five assists. He is also averaging a goal or assist every 73 minutes in the Premier League, the best ratio in Chelsea’s history.
“In that game [against Brighton], I saw a wonderful free kick, which is something that lights up my eyes all the time”, said the former Chelsea player who himself used to light up the eyes of Blues fans regularly.
Zola also urges Palmer not to slow down, and instead advises him to tap in to his limitless potential and follow in the footsteps of some of the all-time greats.
“This is very important. You never settle for what you have achieved. The big players want to be the best player of the game, then the player of the month, then the best in the year and then the best in the country and abroad.
“You have to have this ambition, to get better all the time, because the demands of modern football are very high. If you don’t have high motivation you can’t make it.”
Palmer is on his way to achieving the personal accolades that Zola listed. He is the Premier League’s Player of the Month for September, the Young Player of the Year for the 2023/24 season, England’s current Player of the Year, and a Ballon D’Or nominee.
“This is obviously all down to him and the people that have coached him and are helping him, but he has to continue because he is a sensational player,” said Zola.
The next step for the 22-year-old England international is to lead Chelsea to a trophy under new manager Enzo Maresca, and he will have the opportunity to get closer to that objective when the Blues face Liverpool at Anfield this weekend.
