Cole Palmer has said he is loving his debut season at Chelsea and has praised Mauricio Pochettino for giving him the ‘freedom’ to play his game.
Palmer signed for Chelsea in a £42.5m deal from Manchester City in the summer, with eyebrows raised at that fee given the 21-year-old had started just three Premier League games.
The forward has proven to be one of the signings of the season in the Premier League, scoring 10 league goals and providing a further six assists to break into the senior England squad.
Palmer has praised Pochettino for his show of faith in him this season, while acknowledging the role Manchester City played in his development into one of English football’s best young talents.
“He’s given me the freedom to play my stuff and I like it when he frees you because I feel I can express my stuff more,” Palmer told BBC’s Football Focus when discussing Pochettino.
“I’m loving it. Every day he’s talking to you about different things, not just football things but life things as well. He’s good at making you feel good and trying to get the best out of you.
“What I learnt at City, I wouldn’t be able to learn anywhere else with the manager and the players that were there, one of the best in the world,” Palmer added on his time at the Etihad.
“Then I felt I was ready to play and I thought I might as well just go for it [joining Chelsea]. I just felt like I was ready to play football week in, week out.”
