Mauricio Pochettino believes Cole Palmer has proven he’s a “top player” after his hat-trick helped Chelsea secure a dramatic win against Manchester United.
The 21-year-old’s last two goals got here in stoppage time, with the winner scoring the last goal in Premier League history after 100 minutes and 39 seconds.
Palmer is currently certainly one of 4 players to rating 16 Premier League goals this season, just two goals behind Erling Haaland in the Golden Boot race.
When he signed for Chelsea on deadline day for £42.5m, some frowned at the price, but now it looks like a bargain.
“One of his best skills is his mentality and his ability to deal with pressure.” – said Pochettino.
“He’s young and I think this is his first season where he’s playing very consistently. I think it’s amazing how he handles the pressure. This is everything that can make a very good player.
“After today’s performance, you can’t say he’s not a top player.”
Palmer’s form earned him a senior England debut this season and gave him a chance to make the final squad when Gareth Southgate’s side go to the Euros this summer.
In his last four Premier League games, he has scored six goals and provided two assists in that time, confirming that he continues to be a standout player for Chelsea.
“The impact is amazing. He does a fantastic job, there’s nothing more to say about him. Today he showed mentality and quality,” Pochettino said.
“I said, ‘Cole, two more minutes and you’ll believe it.'”
Palmer’s hat-trick is his first in senior football, while only Yaya Toure (11) and Dimitar Berbatov (9) have taken more penalties in the league and scored each than Palmer has eight this season.
“Crazy match. When we scored in the 98th minute, I thought: ‘Oh well.’ Crazy,” Palmer said.
“I did not know, what to do. I used to be running once I scored. A hat-trick is a hat-trick. It was my first one, I’m very completely happy about it.
“I’ve had a few penalties this season. I’m just going to keep trying to get them. If I get a penalty, I’m going to try to score, I’m not going to try to miss.
“When we scored, he did [Pochettino] he said, “two minutes, come on.” He’s always trying to talk us down. We went all out and luckily we scored.
“He’s a big winner. This is a huge increase in dynamics. It puts everyone in a good mood. Hopefully we can continue playing.”
Chelsea play away at bottom of the table Sheffield United on Sunday in a bid to move up the table and into European competition.
Credit : www.bbc.co.uk
