Cole Palmer has been a revelation since joining Chelsea from Manchester City, often single-handedly winning them crucial points. As has the goal-getting force of Mohamed Salah since swapping AS Roma for Liverpool in the summer of 2017.
Speaking on Sky Sports, defender-turned-pundit Jamie Carragher – who featured 737 times for the Merseyside-based outfit opted for Chelsea posterboy as the Premier League’s standout star over the past 18 months: “I loved him last season, he’s started this season really well.
“And I think I made a comment a few weeks ago that if you look at his almost 18 months at Chelsea, I don’t think there’s been a player in the Premier League who’s performed better than him over these 18 months – and he hasn’t been playing for the best team; I mean, they look like one of the best teams in the league right now.”
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But, statistically, who has been superior since the start of the 2023/24 campaign? Using statistics from the official Premier League website, we’ve taken a look at three different sub-categories: Attacking, Team Play and Defending to decipher whether Carragher’s claim holds any weight.
Shooting Statistics
The pair are both potent in front of goal
So, why not start with what both players are paid the big bucks to do? That is, of course, to score goals. Both Salah and Palmer are two of the division’s hottest properties in front of goal and wheeling away in celebration is a regular occurrence for both.
The Englishman, however, has produced his trademark ‘Ice Cold’ celebration on 33 occasions, while Salah has netted 31 strikes in the same period. In terms of goals scored per match, it is the former who takes the crown (0.75 compared to Palmer’s 0.69).
Palmer’s superior goal tally has certainly been helped by his penchant for scoring from the spot. Regarded as one of the best penalty takers in world football, the 22-year-old has notched 12 times from 12 yards out since the start of 2023/24. Salah has scored just nine spot kicks. The Blues forward, 22, has – albeit just one – also taken more shots since last term got underway. Palmer has let rip on 162 occasions; elsewhere, Salah has 161 attempts to his name.
A total of 70 of Palmer’s 162 shots (43.5%) have tested the opposition goalkeeper, whereas the Egypt international, regarded as one of the best finishers in the top flight right now, has been on target with 55% of his attempts (84/161).
Given they are both pivotal to their respective sides’ attacking play, it should come as no surprise that they are both subject to having plenty of big chances. Ever since the beginning of last campaign, Salah’s enjoyed 53 big chances – 27 of which he has converted. Palmer has scored 21 of his 41 big chances and missed 16 of them. The Liverpool man, who is thriving under Arne Slot, has missed 26.
Attacking Statistics - Salah vs Palmer (since 2023/24)
Statistic
Goals
Goals per match
Penalties scored
Shots
Shots on target
Shooting accuracy (%)
Big chances scored
Big chances missed
Team Play Statistics
Palmer regarded as the more creative of the two
Alongside their throng of goals, both players have been accustomed to setting up their teammates on a week-by-week basis in the Premier League. That’s evidenced by Palmer and Salah’s respective tallies of 17 and 18 since the start of 2023/24.
One man stands taller than the other, however, in terms of their number of touches, passes and how many through balls they have completed over the last 18 months. With reference to how many passes the two have completed, Palmer has been far more involved with Chelsea’s play than Salah has on the red side of Merseyside. Palmer has completed 1,825 passes compared to the Egyptian King’s 1,327.
On a per-match basis, Palmer has completed 36.49 passes – compared to Salah’s 28.61 – which can be attributed to managers, Mauricio Pochettino and Enzo Maresca, often using him in Chelsea’s creative hub in the middle. By virtue of his centralised positioning, the 11-cap England international is used to getting possession of the ball and dictating passages of play, whereas Salah – for Liverpool – is typically the go-to man at the end of a sequence.
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Palmer’s pass completion rate (82.58%) is also superior, with the Liverpool man completing just 75.28% of his attempted passes since 2023/24 got underway. Palmer has also attempted more through balls (38 compared to Salah’s 22). Irrespective of where they are deployed, both stars have been their respective side’s creator-in-chief alongside being their reliable source of goals – as evidenced by their big chance creation numbers.
Palmer has created 28, just behind Salah’s 29, big chances over the last 18 months, but crossing has been a more popular aspect of the youngster’s tool kit. For reference: he’s attempted 146 crosses compared to Salah, whose 63 crosses are dwarfed by his Chelsea counterpart.
Team Play Statistics - Salah vs Palmer (since 2023/24)
Statistic
Assists
Touches
Passes
Passes per match
Pass completion (%)
Through balls
Big chances created
Crosses
Offsides
Defending Statistics
Liverpool man more defensively astute
Albeit not as important as the aforementioned duo of categories, as the old adage says: attack is the first line of defence and Salah, 32, is hugely involved in Liverpool’s defensive set-up on the right wing, often breaking up attacks before mustering their own on the break.
Incredibly, the former Fiorentina man – who has notched 226 strikes in 370 outings since joining his Premier League employers – has completed 129 tackles since the start of 2023/24, whereas Palmer has only put in a tally of 33.
From an interception perspective, Salah has provided his weight in gold by racking up 40 across an 18-month period. For Palmer, his defensive nature is far from apparent with just 25 interceptions to his name, but by virtue of his role in the centre, that’s to be expected.
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Nagrig-born Salah has also chalked up 14 more clearances than Palmer, commonly admired as one of the best left-footed players in the world right now. The former has 30 to his name; the latter, just 16.
The only metric that Manchester-born Palmer has been superior in is blocked shots. Pressuring from the front, the two-time Premier League champion has blocked 49 shots. Salah, elsewhere, has blocked 31 shots.
Defending Statistics - Salah vs Palmer (since 2023/24)
Statistic
Tackles
Blocked shots
Interceptions
Clearances
Fouls
All statistics per Premier League - correct as of 09/12/24