Cole Palmer on Chelsea 'gamble' and how leaving Man City steered him to Euro 2024 with England

In less than 12 months, Cole Palmer has rapidly risen into the spotlight and splashed his name across headline after headline thanks to his superb performances in a Chelsea shirt. The versatile play-maker has taken everything in his stride since arriving at Stamford Bridge and he finished his debut season with a stunning 27 goals and 15 assists across all competitions.

After starting just two Premier League games for Manchester City last season, Palmer has established himself as a crucial part of his new club and his game-changing efforts have now earned him a place at Euro 2024. The 22-year-old made his senior England debut just seven months ago and has already earned the trust and respect of Gareth Southgate.

After earning his first start and scoring his first international goal against Bosnia-Herzegovina earlier this month, Palmer made the cut in England’s final 26-man squad for Euro 2024 just three days later.

Amid his whirlwind 12 months since leaving the Etihad, Palmer has admitted that he would not be talking about representing England this summer if he hadn’t made the perfectly-timed switch to Chelsea.

“I joined to play more regular first team football. The more I played, the more I felt like I could step up and influence the result. It was a gamble at the time but looking back now, it has paid off.  I’ve really enjoyed the challenge and the responsibility of my role in the team. To be honest, I wasn’t expecting to see this level of progress in one season. I feel like I am performing to a high standard — now it is about making sure I hit this level across multiple seasons.”

Palmer also admitted that the younger version of himself probably wouldn’t be surprised to see how much he is flourishing right now, as it was always a goal he had in his sights, even as a child.

“That all the dedication to making it was going to pay off,” the 22-year-old said when asked if he would tell his 10-year-old self right now. “I don’t think he would be surprised though. I always wanted to play at this level and was focused on achieving that. Believe in yourself and your instincts — it could have been easy to stay in Manchester and not step up to the challenge of a new team, regular football, and more responsibility. But I wouldn’t be talking to you about the summer if I hadn’t made the move.”

Cole Palmer grassroots competition opportunity

Palmer spoke during a visit to his boyhood club Wythenshawe FC, where he surprised his former side with a brand-new set of Toshiba 65” 4k TVs as part of their clubhouse refurbishment. The Chelsea and England icon has teamed up with Toshiba TV to provide grassroots clubs with a ‘tech makeover’, to give fans the chance to watch their favourite athletes live during an exciting summer of sport.

Five extra grassroots clubs will also be gifted a set of the Toshiba TVs as part of this collaboration with Palmer, as well as a donation that will aid upgrades, including news kits, a new scoreboard or the clubhouse being decorated. You can find out how to get involved below:

How clubs can get a clubhouse makeover from Toshiba TV

If you’re a club member who wants to enter their club for a chance to fully makeover your clubhouse ahead of the summer of sport, visit the microsite (https://www.seeing-is-believing.com/competition ) to enter.

For your club to participate, you will need to provide the following:

— Name of Club:

— Club address:

— Name of contact: 

— Email: 

— Phone number:

— Club FA Accreditation Number:

— Club website/social media URL:

The competition is the latest activity in Toshiba TV’s Seeing is Believing campaign. Toshiba TVs bring incredible visuals to life in the living rooms of viewers, whether it’s their favourite TV shows, movies, or streaming content on Twitch, YouTube or TikTok. With Toshiba’s Quantum Dot picture quality and ONKYO sound technology, Seeing is Believing. The 65-inch Toshiba LED TV is THE tech upgrade fans need this summer…perfect for a get together with family or friends, crowded round to watch all the action (without breaking the bank!)