Cole Palmer is still misfiring in front of goal
Cole Palmer made his UEFA Conference League debut in this matchup and we hoped that he would use this as an opportunity to get back in goalscoring form. Palmer hasn’t scored a goal in nearly two months and hasn’t recorded an assist since December 1st though not for a lack of trying.
Against Copenhagen, Palmer looked subdued and at times it felt like he was scared to make a driving run or attempt an incisive pass. Perhaps he was coached by Maresca to be more cautious today to help prevent turnovers against a counter attacking side but he was missing some of his trademark flair and verve.
Palmer did let fly two shots on the Copenhagen goal but neither were on target and he failed to test the keeper on any other occasion. According to FotMob he did not have any successful dribbles and was dispossesed twice though he did contribute with 3 tackles won and 2 recoveries.
This is not the creative dynamo we once saw in Chelsea blue and perhaps the matches are adding up a bit too fast for Palmer. Maybe the better choice this week would have been to rest him and let him face Leicester with a full 10 days off versus two days removed from playing 72 minutes in Europe.