Cole Palmer earns England call-up as rapid progress persists

Cole Palmer earns England call-up as rapid progress persists

Cole Palmer has been called up to the senior England squad for the first time, replacing the injured James Maddison.

Palmer’s rise to prominence over the last couple of months has been spectacular, and he capped it off by smashing in the crucial penalty in the dying minutes to seal a draw with his old team Manchester City yesterday evening. Gareth Southgate has clearly been paying attention as Palmer has forced his way into the Chelsea team and quickly become the creative hub of the whole operation.

We’ll admit it – we didn’t think he was a player we needed, given Christopher Nkunku will be back in a few weeks. But he’s not only proved that he’s already a far better player than we thought, he’s also shown his value to the team, with or without Nkunku.

Let’s hope Southgate doesn’t use him too much – we want him fresh for our next batch of games.