Cole Palmer’s impact at Manchester City is gradually affirming the club’s decision to invest £42 million in securing his services. Since his arrival last summer, Palmer has showcased immense talent and potential, making significant contributions to the team’s success

When Cole Palmer compared his new schedule after leaving Manchester City for Chelsea in the summer, he probably only looked at one match. This next weekend, Palmer will play that match at the Etihad with a point to prove.

Palmer, who left the academy last year, has been a supporting player for the past two seasons. Although he performed admirably in the cups, he frequently found it difficult to capitalise on late cameos in the Premier League. He gave off the impression of a young player split between following Pep Guardiola’s wishes to recycle possession and express himself or repress his innate attacking inclinations.

The winger returned to City with crucial equalisers in the Community Shield and UEFA Super Cup after playing a pivotal role in England’s U21 European Championship victory during the summer. Although he was prepared to take the next step, he was aware that there would not be many possibilities at the Etihad. When he made passing remarks following the Super Bowl victory in Athens, it was clear what was to happen.

When the deadline finally arrived, a choice was made. Palmer received a reasonable offer from Chelsea, and City did not obstruct him. Although it was truly unfortunate to be losing such a talented and promising player, everyone involved understood that Palmer would not be able to play as often as he desired if he stayed. For a player who had only made three Premier League starts, £42 million seemed like good value.

Palmer finished his career at City with 41 appearances and 6 goals, none of which came in the league. In reference to his first Premier League goal, he immortalised his comments “Prem soon come” following his historic FA Cup goal at Swindon in 2022. That objective would only come to him after he departed City.

Palmer relocated to Stamford Bridge and hasn’t looked back since. Along with six assists, he has 10 goals overall in the league in addition to that initial one. He would never have imagined returning with 12 goals and 9 assists from 28 appearances, and City might not have anticipated such an impact so quickly. Palmer’s injury-time penalty at Stamford Bridge during the thrilling 4–4 draw earlier this season proved to be costly for them.

Palmer acknowledges that his desire to show that City made a mistake in letting him depart drives him ahead of his return to the Etihad. “We’ll see, but I aim to do it every game. In his usually deadpan manner, he remarked, “It will be a tough game.

Minutes were the only factor in his departure. This season, he has started 16 games for Chelsea in the Premier League, including 15 of the previous 16 when he has been available. He is one minute shy of 1,500 minutes played. In addition, he has started all eight cup matches, including the ones that led to the Carabao Cup final. Not only has he denied City their opportunity, but he has also insisted on being included as Chelsea’s first name on the roster.

He is deserving of all the praise he is receiving and, come season’s end, a potential spot for England. Although City will acknowledge that their academy graduate wouldn’t have received those minutes at the Etihad, they won’t be the least bit shocked to see him excel from regular starts.

Similar results are being observed by City with Real Madrid’s Brahim Diaz, who is excelling in both La Liga and the Champions League following a run of games. At AC Milan, he performed admirably, while Jadon Sancho flourished at Borussia Dortmund. They will be aware that there’s a good probability the young player will succeed at his new team if they allow him to depart for greater playing time. For this reason, the team demands hefty transfer fees in addition to frequently generous buy-back and sell-on clauses.

In his half-season away from City, Palmer has already increased his playing time in the Premier League. Three forwards have played more league minutes for City this season than him, so there is no way he would have produced anything like that under Pep Guardiola. Instead of playing on the wing, where Palmer would have played, all three of them—Juan Alvarez (1,941 minutes), Phil Foden (1,865 minutes), and Bernardo Silva (1,512 minutes)—have spent a significant amount of time in the middle of the pitch.

If he had continued, Oscar Bobb, Jeremy Doku, and Jack Grealish would have been his closest rivals. Doku has 976 minutes, Bobb has 112. Grealish has 702 minutes. Guardiola changed his lineup this season, using his wingers inverted and using fewer wide players overall.

With Doku starting 14 times in all competitions and Bobb starting three times but not in the league, Palmer might have been positioned in the pecking order between the two. He very definitely wouldn’t have started 15 straight games, regardless of the hypotheticals. No one at City does that unless they go by the names of Erling Haaland, Ederson, Rodri, or Kevin De Bruyne.

It would have been difficult to get the ball past Haaland if he hadn’t scored his five penalties against City. With seven substitute appearances, Bobb has more Premier League goal involvements (one goal, one assist) than Palmer had in two seasons (one assist). Neither Palmer nor City have turned back.

Therefore, Palmer isn’t really disproving City. They were well aware of his abilities and would have understood the dangers of allowing that quality to be used elsewhere. In fact, considering the exorbitant transfer fee for a young player with no experience, he’s proving them wrong. How many other young players might earn over £40 million in just 24 months of Premier League action without scoring a goal?

Rather than being viewed as someone who got away, he ought to be welcomed back on Saturday as an academy success story. It’s unfortunate that he’s wearing a royal blue jersey instead of a sky blue one, but he’s accomplishing what City has always known he is capable of.