Cole Palmer swapped the Etihad for Stamford Bridge in a deal worth £42.5m (Picture: Getty)
Chelsea star Cole Palmer has revealed that it was never his intention to leave Manchester City this summer.
Palmer swapped the Etihad for Stamford Bridge in a deal worth £42.5m, a move which raised eyebrows given the 21-year-old’s lack of experience.
But the versatile attacker has arguably been Mauricio Pochettino’s best player this term – ranking first for goals, assists and created chances for the Blues.
Former Chelsea striker Chris Sutton has argued that City boss Pep Guardiola has been left with ‘egg on his face’ after selling Palmer to his old club.
Palmer, though, in a new interview with Sky Sports, has admitted that he never planned to leave last season’s treble winners.
‘My thing was to never leave City,’ Palmer said. ‘That was not my intention. I wanted to go on loan for a year, come back and be ready for the first team.
‘But they said I couldn’t go on loan, either stay or you get sold. So then, Chelsea rang me.
Cole Palmer has been in fantastic form for Chelsea since his summer arrival (Picture: Getty)
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‘I said I wanted to go to Chelsea and I’m really happy to be here. I’m very glad I made the decision to come here.’
Pochettino believes Palmer has the potential to reach Angel Di Maria’s level at Chelsea but the English star has played down his head coach’s compliment.
‘What a player,’ Palmer added. ‘Obviously, it’s high praise, but I’m a long way away from it.’
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‘My thing was to never leave City.’