Haaland wasn't having any of Palmer's cheeky actions
Cole Palmer shone again as Chelsea and Manchester City played out an eight-goal thriller at Stamford Bridge on Sunday evening. Eyebrows were raised when Chelsea paid £42.5 million for the youngster's services in the summer, but he has gone on to prove his worth in a blue shirt.
Palmer has turned in a number of brilliant performances in his short stint as a Chelsea player. He has emerged into one of the club's key players and he would have wanted to produce another strong display against his former side, Man City.
He did exactly that as the two sides drew 4-4 in west London. It looked as if Chelsea would come away from the game with no points after Rodri gave City a 4-3 lead in the 86th minute. But Palmer had other ideas.
Chelsea were given a spot-kick in stoppage-time when Armando Broja was taken out by Ruben Dias in the box. Palmer has become Chelsea's penalty-taker and he quickly took the ball and placed it on the spot. Would the youngster let the pressure get to him? Of course not. He sent Ederson the wrong way and then produced a cold celebration against his former side.
The final whistle sounded shortly after and the spoils were shared. Palmer was named the Player of the Match for his display and he was well worth winning the award.
Cole Palmer tries to listen to Man City's team talk during game
Palmer has quickly become a fan favourite for his performances on the pitch and his actions towards the end of the match at Stamford Bridge have only endeared himself to Chelsea fans even further.
City had one last gasp to win the match when they were given a 98th minute free-kick some 25 yards out. As the referee was counting out 10 yards to tell the Chelsea wall where to stand, City's players huddled around the ball to decide what they were going to do with the set-piece.
Keen to know what City had planned, Palmer decided to join the huddle and listen in. Erling Haaland, who netted another brace on the evening, noticed what his former teammate was doing and quickly acted. With a big smile on his face, the Norwegian grabbed Palmer and jokingly pushed him away, putting an end to his eavesdropping. It was a comical moment, and you can view it below...
Carragher sings Cole Palmer's praises after Chelsea 4-4 Man City
Palmer has drawn praise from many big names in the football world for his performance, including from Jamie Carragher. The Liverpool legend was covering the game on Sky Sports and he talked up the 21-year-old's chances of making England's Euro 2024 squad next summer.
Carragher said on Sky Sports: "What stands out for me is that I admire him for leaving Manchester City. I get frustrated by players who are at big football clubs that don't really play. They'll say they've won the Champions League, the league three times, they've done this and they've done that. But we all know they're a squad player.
"They come off the bench every now and again. I admire the fact he's moved to Chelsea because he'll be feeling a lot better in these four to six weeks than he probably ever has done at Manchester City, no matter what medal he's picked up.
"We all know as players, in your heart of hearts, you know when you deserve a medal - when you've been a big part of something. When you're on the outside looking in, it doesn't feel great. So he'll feel an awful lot better, even if he's at Chelsea the next two or three years and he pick up just a Carabao Cup or one FA Cup.
"He'll feel his body of work here, if he continues the way he's going, is a lot better than what he's done at Manchester City and the medals he might have won. It's nonsense to me, to be honest. Everyone plays a part, but you all know when you've played a major part in a team's success. He's a major part now in this Chelsea team and he almost feels like the main man.
"He's part of the group of players I feel who are making a late surge for the tournament next summer for England. The way he's playing right now, you feel there's a great chance he could end up in that Euros squad."
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