“We thought he could be a top player” - Premier League manager confirms he tried to sign Chelsea star Cole Palmer

Brighton & Hove Albion manager Roberto De Zerbi has revealed that his team tried to sign Cole Palmer last summer. The Chelsea winger has registered 31 goals and assists in the Premier League this season for the Blues.

De Zerbi has now claimed that Brighton, a club known for signing lesser-known talents, tried to sign Palmer as well last summer. He said (via X handle Pys):

“We tried to bring Cole Palmer here at Brighton last summer. We thought he could be a top player. The qualities of Palmer are clear. This season he is playing very well, scoring a lot of goals.”

Cole Palmer ended up joining Chelsea from Manchester City for a reported fee of £46 million in the summer of 2023. He has registered 26 goals and 14 assists in 46 games for Chelsea and Man City this season.

Palmer won the April Goal of the Month and the Player of the Month in the Premier League.

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Cole Palmer hailed as one of the best in the world by Chelsea captain Reece James

Chelsea skipper Reece James returned from injury against Nottingham Forest to help the Blues win the game 3-2. Palmer laid out the first assist with a beautiful through ball for Mykhailo Mudryk.

Praising the Chelsea winger, captain Reece James said after the game (via Talk Sport):

"Cole is one of the best in the world, I think personally. You've seen what he can do when he gets his chance. At Man City he probably didn't play as much as he wanted. He came here and took the opportunity with both hands."

Palmer disagreed with the compliment, saying:

"I wouldn't go that far, but obviously it's nice to hear."

Palmer is in contention for the Player of the Year and the Young Player of the Year award. Chelsea have two games left this season - one against Brighton & Hove Albion and then against Bournemouth on gameweek 38.