Cole Palmer found himself back on the scoresheet against Brentford, making no mistake from the spot as he converted his penalty kick and sealed the win for Chelsea. But overall, his performance on the night left a lot to be desired, as he looked like a shadow of the player who took the Premier League by storm and was being considered the best in England.
Of course, one cannot overlook the constant injury problems that he has been dealing with for months now. Even back at the Club World Cup, he was not believed to be fully fit. And one has to wonder if the drop in form in the second half of last season had something to do with his fitness status at the time.
Anyways, there are some worries about his future at Chelsea as well. The club have been stuck in constant change under this new ownership, and many believe not enough ambition is being shown by them.
Inevitably, the club's best players will want to leave if they are not consistently competing for trophies or playing in the Champions League level. Are we reaching a point where Palmer is starting to consider an exit?
Chelsea fans worried Cole Palmer will leave after what he did vs Brentford
It is interesting that Palmer did not celebrate after scoring against Brentford. Some Chelsea fans seem convinced that it is a sign that he is unhappy and could be on his way out soon. One wrote: "He’s off in the summer."
Another said: "He's very unhappy with what's happening in the club. Only results will keep him and other elite players."
There were others though who viewed it as a sign that he was not happy with his own individual performance. As one said: "He has self awareness and knows that he is not playing well in this game."
To be very honest, it would be wrong to make any judgments based on Palmer not celebrating a goal. He was clearly way off the mark on the day, and it was one of his worst performances in a Chelsea shirt. So, it is very possible that he would not have been satisfied with his display, despite finding the back of the net from the spot.
One can only hope that it was not a sign of him being unhappy at the club as a whole. Chelsea do not have many quality players at the moment. Palmer is certainly one of them. Unfortunately, constant injury problems have clearly had an effect on his performance levels.
Chelsea need to find a way to take care of the issue long-term. If that means having to undergo surgery, it has to be considered.