“For me, it also comes with personal ambition” - Florent Malouda names Chelsea summer signing who can become like Cole Palmer

Former Chelsea winger Florent Malouda has backed Alejandro Garnacho to follow Cole Palmer's footsteps. Garnacho's arrival from Manchester United has failed to impress most of the Stamford Bridge faithful but Malouda believes that the Argentine will do well.

Garnacho was heavily linked with a move to Chelsea throughout the summer transfer window. He eventually secured his exit from Manchester United on August 30, moving to Stamford Bridge in a deal worth reported £40 million.

The Argentine winger went completely out of favor under Ruben Amorim at Old Trafford. It was claimed that the Portuguese manager was not a fan of his antics and attitude on and off the pitch.

While many are sceptical regarding the 21-year-old, Malouda has backed Garnacho to impress at his former club. The former Blues winger also insisted that he could go on to emulate Cole Palmer who also moved to Chelsea for a similar fee. The former French winger told Simon Phillips’ Substack:

“Alejandro Garnacho has talent and could follow the Cole Palmer trajectory, he even has a similar price tag. It’s about delivering, unlike Jadon Sancho who wasn’t able to show his talent and make a difference. What you expect from a player like Garnacho is how he’s able to be consistent in performance and have an impact."

Malouda added:

“For me, it also comes with personal ambition. It’s a done deal, but it shouldn’t be seen as an escape from Manchester United. His ambition should be to become a world-class player at a top football club like Chelsea. That’s the kind of mindset we expect from him, and of course, being an impact on the offensive part of Chelsea’s game.”

Garnacho was once regarded as the future of Manchester United and made 144 appearances for the Red Devils. He scored 26 goals and provided 22 assists for the club and won one FA Cup and one EFL Cup.

It would take something extraordinary for Garnacho to go anywhere close to Palmer in terms of success. Not many expected the attacking midfielder to become the roaring success he has been at Stamford Bridge following his reported £42.5 million move from Manchester City.

Palmer has become not only the best player for Chelsea but one of the best players in the Premier League. He has made 98 appearances for the Blues so far scoring 43 goals and providing 29 assists.

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Omar Marmoush snubs Van Dijk and Saliba as he names Chelsea defender as the most difficult opponent

Manchester City forward Omar Marmoush has named Chelsea defender Reece James as the toughest defender he has ever faced. The Egyptian has played against some of the best defenders in the Premier League and Bundesliga including Virgil van Dijk and William Saliba.

Arsenal's Saliba and Liverpool's van Dijk are widely regarded as the two best defenders in the Premier League. However, Marmoush has claimed that he found it tough against Reece James. He claimed that the right-back is both fast and strong and is therefore very hard to get past. He said, via Metro:

"Until now, it was Reece James. ‘It was my first Premier League game. He’s fast, strong and has quality on the ball. He gave me a tough time. I haven’t played much in the Premier League yet, but I’ll say James for now."

Marmoush has been a solid signing for Manchester City having joined the club in January 2025 for a reported £59 million. The versatile forward has scored eight goals and provided four assists in 28 games for the Cityzens.

Reece James, on the other hand, has been really unfortunate with injury problems in the last few seasons. The Chelsea captain has made 193 appearances for his boyhood club till date and has won five trophies.