Palmer also expressed his annoyance over not playing for England in Euro 2024.
Cole Palmer said that when he was weighing his choices outside of Manchester City, he needed to be “persuaded” to join Chelsea.
With 22 goals and 11 assists in his first Premier League season, the 22-year-old, who cost £42.5 million to acquire at Stamford Bridge last year, has had a significant impact on Chelsea.
Palmer, who has seven goals and five assists in 11 league games this season—including four goals in a half against Brighton—plays a more pivotal role under Enzo Maresca.
But Palmer acknowledged in a GQ interview that he wasn’t first persuaded to move to west London.
Palmer declared, “I wasn’t even going to Chelsea.” “I was convinced.”
When asked who had effectively persuaded him to make that shift, Palmer nodded to his agency.
Palmer waited impatiently for the call informing him that the two teams had come to an agreement after he had given Chelsea the all-clear.
“They’re trying to agree a fee,” he recalled hearing during a Wednesday afternoon training session at City.
“I would always ask the doctor or the kit man if they had agreed to the fee before the ball went out.”
Palmer played little part in England’s march to the Euro 2024 final, not starting a single game under Gareth Southgate despite having an incredible season wearing a Chelsea shirt.
Palmer was perplexed by the decision to only give him 20 minutes off the bench in the following game against Slovenia after the Three Lions were beaten to a draw by Denmark in their second group-stage match.
“To be fair, it was frustrating at England,” he remarked.
Not that the players aren’t talented. However, I had just finished a season in which I was in excellent form, and everything I was doing was falling apart. So, even though the team was having trouble, I didn’t play in the first two games. I kind of wondered, “Why?” Are you aware of what I mean?
In the final against Spain, Palmer did, however, come off the bench to equalize—a goal he had foreseen in his hotel room before the game.
He remarked, “I felt like I was going to score.”
