'I wasn’t even gonna go' - Cole Palmer admits he had to be 'persuaded' to join Chelsea from Man City

Palmer joined the London club from City in the summer of 2023 and has quickly become a star at Stamford Bridge, scoring 32 goals in 58 appearances in all competitions so far. His Blues form earned him a spot in England's squad at Euro 2024, where he went on to score in the final.

Palmer's rise to stardom with Chelsea almost didn't happen, though, as he had to be sold on the idea before he was forced to wait for the clubs to hammer out a £42.5 million ($54m) deal. He made 41 senior appearances for City after coming through the club's youth academy, but was never a regular starter under Pep Guardiola, resulting in him chasing first-team football at Chelsea.

"I wasn’t even gonna go [to] Chelsea, I got persuaded," he said to GQ. "I just knew I wasn’t going to play as much as I wanted to. Even when I was going to England [camps] with younger age groups, you had players there who were playing in the league every week. And you’re looking around thinking, I can play in the league. When you’re not playing, it’s annoying."

Guardiola said that Palmer had been pushing for a move, but the attacking midfielder said: "No – do you know what, I just wanted to go on loan."

Palmer was one of eight players who had to pull out of the England squad due to an injury and it is not yet known if he will be fit for Chelsea's clash against Leicester on November 23.