Cole Palmer has decided where his future lies after being linked with a remarkable return to Manchester City, with TEAMtalk able to provide an update on the star amid eye-catching claims in Spain that Chelsea have received a British record offer.
Palmer came through the Man City academy before making his senior debut in September 2020. The attacking midfielder, who can play centrally or on the right flank, played 41 times for City, notching six goals and two assists.
Palmer told Pep Guardiola he wanted to play more in summer 2023, which saw Man City bring up the idea of a loan spell.
But Palmer told City he either wanted guaranteed game time in their first team or to be sold.
Chelsea seized the opportunity to sign the playmaker in a £42.5million deal, and the transfer has proven to be a masterstroke.
Palmer is now one of the best players in the Premier League and Chelsea’s talisman, having managed 43 goals and 29 assists in 97 games for the Blues so far.
He has scored a plethora of important goals for Chelsea, including a brace in the Club World Cup final triumph over Paris Saint-Germain earlier this month.
But Palmer has been linked with a big-money move away from Stamford Bridge on a couple of occasions.
According to Spanish outlet Fichajes, City are going ‘stronger than ever’ to bring the England ace back to the club and have supposedly ‘made an offer of £170m’ (€195.5m / $228m).
It is alleged that Chelsea have responded by demanding a world-record fee of £250m (€287m / $335m).
However, TEAMtalk understands that no such bid has arrived from City as they know it would be almost impossible to re-sign Palmer from Chelsea.
The Cityzens are currently focused on other targets, such as Newcastle United right-back Tino Livramento.
City have lost Kevin De Bruyne and Palmer would have been a supreme replacement, but Rayan Cherki has moved to the Etihad instead. Phil Foden and Omar Marmoush will also help City move on from the legendary Belgian.
Even if City did make an offer for Palmer in the future, TEAMtalk can reveal that the 23-year-old does not intend to go back to the club.
He feels they should have trusted in his ability the first time around and is enjoying proving the side wrong by starring for both Chelsea and England.
Palmer is happy in London and is delighted at being Chelsea’s main man. His contract with Enzo Maresca’s side runs until June 2033, which means he could spend the majority of his career at Stamford Bridge.
The only reason Palmer would want to leave is if Chelsea’s project fails to result in Premier League and Champions League glory, as he has huge ambitions and wants to win the Ballon d’Or in the future.
While Chelsea are not there yet, they have made good progress under Maresca and have won the Europa Conference League and Club World Cup recently, as well as qualifying for the Champions League.
Chelsea gearing up for big season
This season will be a crucial one to analyse how close Chelsea are to winning the Premier League and club chiefs know this, which is why they have attacked the market.
Players such as Liam Delap, Joao Pedro and Jamie Gittens have been signed, with the likes of Jorrel Hato and Xavi Simons up next.
Chelsea are also in the process of streamlining their squad, having offloaded players such as Noni Madueke, Kepa Arrizabalaga, Djordje Petrovic and Jadon Sancho. Raheem Sterling, Joao Felix and Christopher Nkunku are just some of the other players who could be sold, too.
Should Chelsea’s project stall, then Real Madrid could be one potential destination for Palmer. It was claimed recently that Xabi Alonso is a huge admirer of the former PFA Young Player of the Year and would ‘love’ to have him at Madrid.
Palmer grew up supporting City’s rivals Manchester United and so there would be an obvious appeal to that move. But United are way behind the likes of City and Chelsea and would need to replicate their previous success under Sir Alex Ferguson to convince Palmer on joining.
Liverpool have also been linked with Palmer, though he looks set to stay at Chelsea for the long run.
It is understandable that the player is a wanted man as he is one of the most talented stars in the world, though Chelsea will do everything they can to keep him for all his prime years.
City ‘here we go’; Chelsea exit agreed
Plus, you can read the latest on Chelsea’s pursuit of Simons here.