November 10th 2023.
Cole Palmer has made an impressive start to his Chelsea career, and Pep Guardiola has revealed the young midfielder's desire to be a guaranteed starter played a key role in Manchester City's decision to sell him. Palmer had starred during pre-season, scoring in both the Community Shield and European Super Cup final, so his departure in the summer came as a surprise to many.
However, the addition of Jeremy Doku increased the competition for a place in the team, and Palmer chose to take a fresh challenge, joining Chelsea for £40 million. His decision appears to have been vindicated, with the England Under-21 international already becoming an integral part of Mauricio Pochettino's rebuilding project. This weekend, Palmer will face his boyhood club for the first time since his move - and Guardiola insists he has no regrets over his sale.
"I'm really pleased," said Guardiola when asked to assess Palmer's recent performances. "The reason we sold him was that he wanted to play more. He has that now, so congratulations. He has been successful since he came from the academy, and I wish him the best."
When asked if it was a shame Palmer was no longer representing City, Guardiola said: "Congratulations to Chelsea and him."
The City boss also spoke of his delight at seeing another former charge, Raheem Sterling, return to his best form at Stamford Bridge. "He's playing really well and he's back to his best moment, from what I've seen of his performances lately," he said. "He's creating incredible danger for opponents, like he did here for many years. He was a big part of our early successes here, and was really, really important."
[This article has been trending online recently and has been generated with AI. Your feed is customized.]
[Generative AI is experimental.]
