“He must start for England” – Paul Merson says 21-year-old Chelsea star should start for England at the Euros
Chelsea star Cole Palmer is rightfully away with Gareth Southgate’s England squad right now during the international break.
It’s only his second ever camp with the England senior group, but we should definitely get used to seeing him involved with the national side.
Now he’s starring every week in the Premier League for Chelsea, will he be able to force his way into the Three Lions starting XI?
Speaking via England’s X account last week, international manager Gareth Southgate described Cole Palmer’s performances at club level this season as “outstanding”.
The Blues attacking playmaker would surely love to get a chance in England’s friendlies versus Brazil and Belgium in the next week, especially because there’s a major tournament just on the horizon this summer.
England should go into this summer’s Euro 2024 tournament feeling like they’ve got a big chance to win it. But with the amount of talent in their ranks, it will be a very difficult XI to break into.
Sky Sports pundit Paul Merson has been discussing Chelsea’s in-form star Palmer and his chances of starting at the Euros. He actually suggests that the 21-year-old isn’t ready yet to start for England at a major tournament, but he’d check him out in the upcoming friendlies.
Merson told Sky Sports: “It’s unfair to bring in players like Cole Palmer and Jarrad Branthwaite and play them at Wembley alongside a lorry load of players with three or four caps each.
“If Palmer has a chance of going to the Euros, then play him with the likes of Kane, Bukayo Saka and Jude Bellingham where they can get a bit of understanding between them.
“Everything goes through Palmer at Chelsea but that won’t be the case with England. He has to play in one of these friendlies to understand he won’t be touching the ball 100 times and get used to that.
“It’s a different game at the international level, especially for someone like him where he’s the star man at Chelsea. In my opinion, it’s too soon to see Palmer starting at the Euros having only a few caps.”
Reasons why England should use Cole Palmer
Even if it’s only second-half cameos off the bench, England need to plan to use Palmer this summer.
There’s no doubt for us that he’s already done enough to warrant a spot on the plane for the Euros. He’s only getting better and better with each game, too.
Palmer simply does make an impact whenever he’s on a football pitch, with his football IQ so incredibly high for a youngster. It’s why we’ve got no doubts about him on the international stage.
A return of 14 goals and 12 assists in 34 Chelsea appearances so far this campaign is remarkable in a new team.
We appreciate competition for places is extreme against the likes of Bukayo Saka, Phil Foden, Jude Bellingham and James Maddison. But we have huge confidence in Chelsea’s versatile attacker that is calmness personified.
Speaking via ESPN a few weeks ago, Arsenal and England midfielder Declan Rice praised Palmer for his form this year. We hope the duo are on the pitch at the same time at the Euros.
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