As Manchester United shift their focus toward a number 10, Chelsea have moved to end any lingering speculation surrounding Cole Palmer.
Cole Palmer looks lost from the Cold Palmer era that many have become used to at Chelsea.
His miss from the penalty spot in the 3-1 defeat to Nottingham Forest, served as a symbol of a player who looks mentally and physically broken. John Obi Mikel thinks it’s due to Palmer disagreeing with the direction the club is heading in, but nobody really knows the real reason.
Speculation regarding Palmer’s future is fueled by reports of interest from Manchester United and his desire for Champions League football.
Chelsea fans are increasingly divided: is he a generational talent being failed by the board’s chaos, or not as good as we thought he was?
Realistically, how much is Cole Palmer worth?🤔
Chelsea set Cole Palmer price tag
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Chelsea want £140m for a Cole Palmer conversation
Ben Jacobs via The United Stand has claimed that Chelsea have no desire to sell Cole Palmer, but it would take around £140 million to even start a conversation amid interest from Manchester United.
“The thing that puts off Manchester United on Cole Palmer is really two things. The first is that Palmer’s a ten. Palmer’s not a float wide. Palmer doesn’t relish going out on the right-hand side, and although he’s been utilised at times under Enzo Maresca on the left, he’s not your out-and-out winger, and Cunha and Mbeumo both signed as tens. So to go again with a massive fee on effectively another player that wants to go 10 or a second striker and have all the freedom in the centre of the park, it’s just not the priority.
“Morgan Rogers is different to Cole Palmer, because although he can play in that position, he’s just as comfortable as a left winger. So, in Morgan Rogers, you get someone you can stick on the left-hand side, and as a slash when Bruno eventually leaves the football club, you could move him into a central position, and you can interchange him with Cunha, who can also play as a left winger. So slightly more of a stylistic fit with Morgan Rogers.
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“Second point with Palmer is Chelsea’s valuation, which officially is just untouchable, not for sale, no price. But to sign Cole Palmer, realistically, Chelsea paid £40 million plus £2.5 million in add-ons. And you would have to add, I’m told, £100 million to that fee to even start a conversation. So we’re talking about more than Alexander Isak.”
A Cole Palmer sale should be non-negotiable
Despite the noise surrounding Manchester United’s interest, Chelsea must view Cole Palmer as the non-negotiable part of their rebuild.
His dip is symptomatic of the club’s structural chaos and the current state of this Chelsea team rather than a loss of ability. Yes, his performances have been awful of late, but in a thriving Blues team, a confident Cole Palmer could wreak havoc like he once did.
Selling their only true creative outlet would signal a surrender of ambition. Instead, the board must appoint a manager like Andoni Iraola who can restore Palmer to his preferred central role, moving away from the restrictive wide-left experiments that have stifled his output.
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