Cole Palmer is once again the centre of attention after another jaw dropping performance for Chelsea. This time it was a Premier League record setting effort – four goals in one half of football. Nobody’s done that before. The only question is what the Wythenshawe Wizard does next.
A year ago he was only just making himself into a starter. It’s quite astonishing how quickly his status has changed since then.
On Monday Night Football Jamie Carragher called him the best player in the country right now, and on Talksport, Andy Goldstein went even a stage further, claiming that the prodigy would end up winning the Ballon d’Or.
Pundit predicts big things for superstar
“I think he’s got an unbelievable future ahead of him,” Goldstein said, in total seriousness.
“He’ll end up at Real Madrid, he’ll be one of England’s greatest ever players and he will win the Ballon d’Or. I’m not joking, he will win the Ballon d’Or in the next three years – mark my words, by the time he’s 25. I could talk about Cole Palmer for the next 20 days and not get bored.”
Well, what more can you say? We certainly hope it’s true (apart from the part about Real Madrid). We just don’t want to jinx it by predicting too much too soon.
One of the great things about Cole is how much his feet are on the ground – he has a cocky streak, but only in a very minor and likeable way. He might make a cheeky joke about never missing a penalty, but he’s not the type to get too big for his boots all of a sudden. Enzo Maresca has spoken this week about his great mentality.
If he keeps that mentality intact and keeps playing well, there’s no reason Goldstein can’t be spot on with his prediction.