“He’s done it without us really noticing” - Arsenal legend Martin Keown compares Chelsea star to Kevin De Bruyne after latest win

Arsenal icon Martin Keown compared Chelsea's Cole Palmer to Kevin De Bruyne after he inspired the Blues to a crucial 1-0 win against Fulham at Stamford Bridge (January 13).

The west London side won their third Premier League game in a row, returning to winning ways after a shock 1-0 loss to Middlesbrough midweek in the EFL Cup. Palmer was instrumental in the hosts securing all three points.

The 21-year-old played a stellar through ball into the path of Raheem Sterling in the second minute of stoppage time in the first half. The latter was clipped in the box, winning his side a penalty. Palmer made no mistake from the spot, scoring his fifth penalty of the season.

Keown reckons Pep Guardiola made a mistake letting Palmer go over the summer. He said (via talkSPORT):

“Palmer played a De Bruyne-like pass, it’s the kind of pass we hadn’t seen in this game yet. Palmer sees these opportunities on the pitch. We talk about a helicopter vision of the game from De Bruyne, and I think Palmer has that as well."

He added:

“I think Palmer is the one young player here who sees himself with that calmness. It was never in doubt [scoring the penalty], he’s so confident in front of goal. It’s been a game where Chelsea have totally dominated but haven’t shown any composure, but there was plenty on view from Palmer there. They should call him Cold Palmer."

Keown lauded Palmer's statistics this number and claimed that Guardiola might've made a mistake in letting the midfielder go:

“Palmer’s statistics are phenomenal – there’s only Jude Bellingham ahead of him as an Under-21 player throughout Europe, it’s incredible and he’s done it without us really noticing."

“He’s icy cool. When you see him take the penalty you can see him sort of going, ‘Fantastic, this is my moment, give us the ball’ – a lot of other players would be shirking that responsibility. Would you say Pep got this wrong? Should he have allowed him to come here to Chelsea?"

He concluded:

“But it’s just as well he came here, because if he didn’t come to Chelsea you wonder where they might be this season, because he’s the player doing everything, pulling all the strings, and at such a young man playing with a nice arrogance."

“It’s only Man City, really, who can allow a player of this calibre to go and leave their club and it not affect their performances. He could rescue Chelsea’s season this year.”

The Blues signed Palmer from Manchester City last summer for a reported transfer fee of £40 million. The winger has scored eight goals and provided seven assists in 21 appearances across all competitions for them.

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Chelsea vs Fulham: Who was the Player of the Match?

Chelsea dug deep to seal a 1-0 win against Fulham on Saturday. Their win took them to eighth in the league table with 31 points from 21 games, 14 points behind leaders Liverpool. Let's take a look at who the Player of the Match was.

As per FotMob, Levi Colwill was given the highest rating of any outfield player on the pitch (8.5). The 20-year-old makeshift left-back made 16 passes into the final third, creating one big chance. He also won four tackles from six attempts, made six clearances, 10 recoveries, and won 10 duels.

Colwill has flourished under Mauricio Pochettino this season and has regularly found himself in the starting XI. He will next be in action in the Blues' EFL Cup semi-final second leg at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday, January 23.