When Cole Palmer is limited to the bench for his nation following an outstanding season in Chelsea colours, it speaks volumes about the strength of the English national team.
When England plays Spain in the Euro 2024 final on Sunday in Berlin, the 22-year-old is set to start the match, continuing his lack of starting experience under Gareth Southgate at the Euros.
Kyle Walker, the right-back for Manchester City, is one player who is anticipated to start, maybe in a back three; otherwise, Southgate may go back to a flat back four.
In any case, Walker will be hoping Cole Palmer can continue to impress from the bench, as he did when he set up Ollie Watkins’ amazing last-minute goal in the win over Holland.
You have a feeling that England supporters everywhere will be yelling for Palmer and Watkins to come on if things get a bit tense against the Spanish.
And with good reason! They combined for 65 goals and 65 assists for Chelsea and Aston Villa in the previous season, helping Unai Emery’s team qualify for the Champions League.
- Walker’s recent criticism of his teammate in the run-up to the championship game is rather harsh, so it’s a good thing the Chelsea playmaker isn’t easily rattled!
It made sense for England’s official YouTube channel to assign the Treble-winner, who is renowned for his pace and is perhaps one of the league’s fastest players, the duty of assessing his colleagues in terms of speed.
Walker and Anthony Gordon of Newcastle United were unsurprisingly ranked first and second, respectively, with goalie Jordan Pickford coming in last.
- However, Walker referred to the Everton player as a “sloth” because he “moves so slow” after he was joined by Palmer.
Walker explicitly states, “don’t take it to heart,” yet Palmer can still sing and dance like the greatest musicians in Europe, which is a blessing.
Cole Palmer’s velocity
- Walker remarked, “John (Stones) and I call him the sloth because he moves so slowly.” However, the way his body moves transports you everywhere.
Pickford and Palmer, the two sloths, are at the bottom. But please don’t take it personally—I adore each and every one of you.
- With Cole Palmer, Gareth Southgate needs to take the initiative.
Palmer needs to be on the pitch as quickly as possible in case something goes wrong, even though fans have accepted that he won’t start.The fact that Manchester City’s Rodri is considered “the most valuable player in world football” for a reason makes this Spanish team different in that they will tear you to pieces.
Then there is Lamine Yamal of Spain, the record-breaker for Euro 2024. If Southgate had been his coach, you shudder to think if he would have received any playing time.
But now is Palmer’s and his colleagues’ chance to accomplish what countless English players have failed to accomplish for decades: win that coveted trophy.
