Premier League legend Alan Shearer has claimed that Chelsea would be a much worse side without Cole Palmer.
Palmer has been Chelsea's stand-out player since completing a £40 million move to Stamford Bridge from Manchester City last summer.
In 57 games for the Blues, the England international has scored 32 goals and provided 20 assists – a combined figure higher than any other midfielder in Europe over the same time period.
“Chelsea wouldn’t be anywhere near as good as they are without him in the team," Shearer, who is the Premier League's all-time top scorer with 260 goals, said of Palmer during a recent interview with The Athletic.
"He dictates everything," added the former Newcastle United striker. "His passing ability, his willingness to take the ball in tight areas, his finishing."
"He has all the hallmarks of being a top-class player for years to come," Shearer said.
In terms of last season, Shearer's claim about Palmer can, at least somewhat, be justified.
In the Premier League, Palmer's 22 goals and 11 assists won Chelsea a total of 25 points. Without those points, rather than finish the season in sixth place as they did, Mauricio Pochettino's Blues would have finished in 16th – one place below Brentford and one ahead of Nottingham Forest.
Under new manger Enzo Maresca this term, however, while Palmer's contributions have still been mightily important for Chelsea – most notably his four goal haul in their 4-2 over Brighton – the burden of scoring and setting up goals has been more evenly shared throughout the rest of the team.
Palmer remains Chelsea's top scorer in the top flight with seven, but Nicolas Jackson also has six goals to his name – triple his total from the same point last year – while Noni Madueke has four.
In terms of assists, it's Palmer who leads the way again with five, but both Jackson and Jadon Sancho also have three apiece, while Moises Caicedo and Pedro Neto have two each.
When it comes to points won, Palmer wins again. He's earned the Blues eight. Once more, however, he's followed closely by Jackson, who has won six.
It's important to take these statistics with a pinch of salt.
They assume that nobody else, most notably Chelsea's defenders, contributed to the team's goals and victories in any way.
That being said, they are a good indication that while Palmer still remains Chelsea's most important player, the Blues are much better team unit this term under Maresca, and are less reliant on the magic of the Wythenshawe Wizard.
Commentaires