If he was playing for Bayern Munich, Thomas Müller might refer to him as ‘Goal’ Palmer, and while that joke is a bad start to this, Cole Palmer’s form since moving to Chelsea has been anything but.
The latest addition to a fine catalogue of displays since moving to Stamford Bridge, his second four-goal game in the league for the Blues, becoming just the ninth player to score 4+ goals in at least two different games.
What’s more impressive is the fact that all four goals came in the first half, becoming the first player in the competition’s history to do so, with Sergio Agüero (x2), Jermain Defoe and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer doing so in the second half.
| Premier League | Opponent | Date | Goals |
| Robbie Fowler | Bolton Wanderers | 23/09/1995 | 4 |
| Robbie Fowler | Middlesbrough | 14/12/1996 | 4 |
| Michael Owen | Nottingham Forest | 24/10/1998 | 4 |
| Michael Owen | West Bromwich Albion | 26/04/2003 | 4 |
| Andrew Cole | Ipswich Town | 04/03/1995 | 5 |
| Andrew Cole | Newcastle United | 30/08/1999 | 4 |
| Ole Gunnar Solskjær | Nottingham Forest | 06/02/1999 | 4 |
| Ole Gunnar Solskjær | Everton | 04/12/1999 | 4 |
| Frank Lampard | Derby County | 12/03/2008 | 4 |
| Frank Lampard | Aston Villa | 27/03/2010 | 4 |
| Dimitar Berbatov | Reading | 29/12/2007 | 4 |
| Dimitar Berbatov | Blackburn Rovers | 27/11/2010 | 5 |
| Yakubu | Middlesbrough | 15/05/2004 | 4 |
| Yakubu | Swansea City | 03/12/2011 | 4 |
| Sergio Agüero | Tottenham Hotspur | 18/10/2014 | 4 |
| Sergio Agüero | Newcastle United | 03/10/2015 | 5 |
| Sergio Agüero | Leicester City | 10/02/2018 | 4 |
| Cole Palmer | Everton | 15/04/2024 | 4 |
| Cole Palmer | Brighton and Hove Albion | 28/09/2024 | 4 |
Since his debut for Chelsea against Nottingham Forest in September 2023, he now has more Premier League goal involvements than any other player (43 – 28 goals, 15), leaving Erling Haaland in his wake with a paltry 39.
If we open up to players across Europe’s big five leagues, only England teammate Harry Kane (49) can better Palmer’s total in that time. It’s safe to say he’s been nothing short of phenomenal.
With that being said, here’s a look at some of his more interesting achievements during his 13 months at Stamford Bridge, and what’s potentially still to come…
Spot On
What fans have become accustomed to with Cole Palmer is an unerring ability to stay calm under pressure, something best exhibited by his immaculate penalty record.
Only Yaya Touré (11/11) has a better 100% conversion rate from the spot in Premier League history than Palmer, who notched his 10th successful spot kick against Brighton, the second of his four-goal haul.
| Premier League | Penalties Taken (min. 10) | Goals (penalties) | Conversion Rate |
| Yaya Touré | 11 | 11 | 100% |
| Cole Palmer | 10 | 10 | 100% |
| Matthew Le Tissier | 26 | 25 | 96% |
| Danny Murphy | 19 | 18 | 95% |
| Callum Wilson | 17 | 16 | 94% |
| James Beattie | 17 | 16 | 94% |
| Erling Haaland | 16 | 15 | 94% |
| Julian Dicks | 16 | 15 | 94% |
| Thierry Henry | 25 | 23 | 92% |
| Ivan Toney | 12 | 11 | 92% |
With a spread of six to his right, three to his left and one down the middle, it’s a varied approach that has clearly worked for him so far, and will more than likely benefit both club, and possibly country, in the future.
Hat-trick of Hat-Tricks
We’ve already discussed his achievement with regards to two games of 4+ goals, but in notching his third hat-trick in what is just 58 appearances in the competition, he’s the fourth-youngest player to reach three hat-tricks in the competition’s history.
| Date | Player | Opponent | Age at Event | Goals |
| 24/10/1998 | Michael Owen | Nottingham Forest | 18y 314d | 4 |
| 23/09/1995 | Robbie Fowler | Bolton Wanderers | 20y 167d | 4 |
| 02/10/2022 | Erling Haaland | Manchester United | 22y 073d | 3 |
| 28/09/2024 | Cole Palmer | Brighton and Hove Albion | 22y 145d | 4 |
| 04/03/1995 | Andrew Cole | Ipswich Town | 23y 140d | 5 |
| 14/01/2017 | Harry Kane | West Bromwich Albion | 23y 170d | 3 |
| 04/02/2017 | Romelu Lukaku | Bournemouth | 23y 267d | 4 |
| 03/04/2024 | Phil Foden | Aston Villa | 23y 311d | 3 |
| 23/01/2010 | Wayne Rooney | Hull City | 24y 091d | 4 |
| 02/01/1995 | Alan Shearer | West Ham United | 24y 142d | 3 |
With only Michael Owen, Robbie Fowler and Erling Haaland younger, and who are all out-and-out strikers, it’s makes it even more impressive how Palmer has already added his name to this stellar group of names.
Indeed, all three of his hat-tricks have come in 2024, doing so against Manchester United and Everton in April last season, although he’s still got a little while to go before eclipsing the six by Harry Kane in 2017:
| Premier League | Year | Number of Hat-Tricks |
| Harry Kane | 2017 | 6 |
| Alan Shearer | 1995 | 5 |
| Wayne Rooney | 2011 | 3 |
| Michael Owen | 1998 | 3 |
| Erling Haaland | 2022 | 3 |
| Erling Haaland | 2024 | 3 |
| Cole Palmer | 2024 | 3 |
| Sergio Agüero | 2018 | 3 |
| Luis Suárez | 2013 | 3 |
| Ruud van Nistelrooij | 2003 | 3 |
Best of The Blues
Chelsea have had a plethora of Premier League greats don their famous blue strip, so to see Cole Palmer’s 2024 so far rank amongst their very best in terms of goals and goal involvements is quite something.
20 goals and 11 assists already in 2024 puts Palmer T-4th for goals in the competition for the Blues in a calendar year and T-4th again for goal involvements with 31 in total so far, with potentially as many as 13 Premier League games still to play in 2024
As is the theme however, Harry Kane remains the main to catch for both overall thanks to an incredible 2017, notching 39 goals and 46 goal involvements in total, but it’s nice to have something to aim for.
| Chelsea – Premier League | Year | Goals | Chelsea – Premier League | Year | Goals | Assists | Goals+Assists | |
| Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink | 2001 | 25 | Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink | 2001 | 25 | 11 | 36 | |
| Didier Drogba | 2010 | 22 | Didier Drogba | 2010 | 22 | 13 | 35 | |
| Diego Costa | 2016 | 21 | Frank Lampard | 2005 | 20 | 13 | 33 | |
| Frank Lampard | 2005 | 20 | Diego Costa | 2016 | 21 | 10 | 31 | |
| Cole Palmer | 2024 | 20 | Cole Palmer | 2024 | 20 | 11 | 31 | |
| Didier Drogba | 2006 | 19 | Eden Hazard | 2018 | 17 | 11 | 28 | |
| Didier Drogba | 2009 | 18 | Didier Drogba | 2006 | 19 | 8 | 27 | |
| Frank Lampard | 2010 | 17 | Didier Drogba | 2009 | 18 | 9 | 27 | |
| Florent Malouda | 2010 | 17 | Florent Malouda | 2010 | 17 | 7 | 24 | |
| Eden Hazard | 2018 | 17 | Frank Lampard | 2009 | 10 | 14 | 24 |
Looking Ahead
While it’s fun to look back at some of the things Palmer has achieved so far in his relatively short career to date, it’s even more fun to look ahead to what he might do in the games to come.
One example of this would be by the time he reaches 50 starts in the competition. He’s already on 38 across both his time at Manchester City (3) and Chelsea (35), with all 44 of his goal involvements in the league to date (28 goals and 16 assists) coming in those starts.
| Premier League – First 50 Starts | Goals | Assists | Goals+Assists |
| Erling Haaland | 51 | 13 | 64 |
| Andrew Cole | 41 | 16 | 57 |
| Alan Shearer | 45 | 7 | 52 |
| Mohamed Salah | 36 | 14 | 50 |
| Eric Cantona | 26 | 23 | 49 |
| Bruno Fernandes | 29 | 18 | 47 |
| Thierry Henry | 31 | 15 | 46 |
| Cole Palmer (38 Starts) | 28 | 16 | 44 |
| Fernando Torres | 36 | 6 | 42 |
| Gabriel Jesus | 32 | 10 | 42 |
| Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang | 35 | 6 | 41 |
| Teddy Sheringham | 30 | 11 | 41 |
| Didier Drogba | 24 | 17 | 41 |
Extrapolated over the course of 50 starts (1.16 goal involvements per start), at his current rate he’ll reach 58 goal involvements by his 50th start, fewer than only Erling Haaland, but there’s not many lists the Norwegian doesn’t top.
And while that’s to come, Palmer currently ranks second in Premier League history for minutes per goal involvement (min. 5 involvements), it truly puts into perspective what the PFA Young Player of Year for 2023-24 has already achieved.
| Premier League | Minutes Played | Goals | Assists | Goals+Assists (min. 5) | Mins/Goal Involvement |
| Erling Haaland | 5871 | 73 | 13 | 86 | 68 |
| Cole Palmer | 3610 | 28 | 16 | 44 | 82 |
| Jhon Durán | 745 | 9 | 0 | 9 | 83 |
| Thierry Henry | 21313 | 175 | 74 | 249 | 86 |
| Sergio Agüero | 19857 | 184 | 47 | 231 | 86 |
| Mohamed Salah | 21793 | 161 | 73 | 234 | 93 |
| Stevan Jovetic | 1147 | 8 | 4 | 12 | 96 |
| Federico Macheda | 609 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 102 |
| Robin van Persie | 20115 | 144 | 53 | 197 | 102 |
| Harry Kane | 26939 | 213 | 46 | 259 | 104 |
| Luis Suárez | 9577 | 69 | 23 | 92 | 104 |
Who knows, by the end of this season he could be adding a PFA Player of the Year award to his trophy cabinet.
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