Jadon Sancho has jumped to the defence of Cole Palmer after the Chelsea attacker missed a penalty with his goal drought now extended to nine games in all competitions.
Palmer had the chance to put the Blues ahead in the first half of their Premier League clash with Leicester City on Sunday afternoon. However, Mads Hermansen produced a fine stop to deny the 22-year-old, who has not found the back of the net for the west Londoners since the 2-2 draw with Bournemouth at Stamford Bridge on January 14.
Sancho, who played 90 minutes on Sunday, has leapt to defend his close friend and has backed him to return to his brilliant best sooner rather than later. Speaking to Sky Sports, Sancho said: "I'm not worried about Cole Palmer. The lads are behind him.
"He missed a penalty, but so what? We know he will score his next penalty - that is football. Cole is a great player and will be back."
Chelsea did not require Palmer to score as the Blues edged the match 1-0 with Marc Cucurella's goal on 60 minutes proving to be enough at Stamford Bridge.
The miss from 12 yards was the first of Palmer's career to date. The England international had scored all 12 of his Premier League penalties before seeing his effort saved by Hermansen. Palmer continued to cut a frustrated figure on the Stamford Bridge pitch before being taken off on 73 minutes for Tyrique George.
Enzo Maresca revealed after the game that Palmer has been feeling unwell and that influenced his decision to bring the No.20 off. "It's very easy: Cole, yesterday, didn't train and during the night, he didn't feel well.
"This morning, he woke up and he asked me, 'I want to be on the pitch because I want to help this team, this club to play Champions League."
Reece James also missed the game against the Foxes due to illness. Malo Gusto did not recover in time from the knock he picked up in Copenhagen but the Frenchman was in attendance to see his teammates win and move Chelsea back into the top four of the Premier League table.
Sign up for Chelsea news direct to your email inbox
Chelsea ended the 2023/24 Premier League season on a high, but it is never quiet at Stamford Bridge and the summer looks set to be one full of news, with question marks over Mauricio Pochettino's future at the club and plenty of talk around transfers.
And by signing up to our newsletter here, you'll make sure you receive the best Blues content including news, rumours, articles and fan opinions - direct into your inbox and all for free!
We also want to hear from you. Create an account here in just a few moments, so you can have your say on all things Chelsea, join the debate and take part in exclusive Q&As as well.