Cole Palmer will have plenty of time this summer for reflection on a disappointing season for Chelsea, where they finished 10th in the Premier League, missing out on European qualification for next season
11:43, 01 Jun 2026Updated 11:54, 01 Jun 2026
Cole Palmer has had a disappointing season for Chelsea(Image: Michael Regan – The FA)
Cole Palmer needs to become a “killer” if he wants to get his Chelsea and England careers back on track, according to former Blues captain Marcel Desailly.
If you ask Desailly to put his medals on the table, then he can make a decent showing. Although the FA Cup in 2000 was his best Stamford Bridge achievement, he won two Italian league titles in his prime with AC Milan as well as the Champions League with Milan and with Marseille.
And then, of course, there is the matter of his international career – 118 caps for France. Champion of Europe in 2000. Champion of the world in 1998.
Desailly was a master of driving teams from deep, seeing the whole field, so when he talks of position and where he thinks current Chelsea star, Palmer, should be playing, Desailly is worth a listen.
Palmer will have plenty of time this summer for reflection on a disappointing season for Chelsea, where they finished 10th in the Premier League, missing out on European qualification for next season.
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But the crushing news of a call from England boss, Thomas Tuchel, to tell him he had been left out of the squad for the upcoming World Cup in North America was the final hammer-blow of a campaign that has left many people scratching their heads.
And Desailly feels the same way as many observers when it comes to Palmer and Chelsea – he marvels at the 24-year-old playmaker’s ability but feels he still needs to stand up and assert himself with new manager, Xabi Alonso, and take charge of how he wants his career to develop.
“What a talent,” said Desailly, who was speaking to MrRaffle.com. “There’s nothing to say against the talent of Palmer. The only doubt I have around Palmer is how he has been used.
“He’s playing on the right side. I saw him more playing in that position behind a striker and having the responsibility for the offensive animation.
“They did not give him that role. But I could also see that he never came out and said, ‘I can do it, I am ready for it.’
“I feel that the talent is there – no doubt – but mentally he’s not a killer. Each top player has to be a killer inside himself. He wants to win trophies, he wants to be the best, and he’s ready to work hard to become the best.
“I feel that Palmer is satisfied if he has to stay, okay; if he has to go, okay. He doesn’t seem to have a problem with anything.
“Because of the level he has reached today, he has to step up. Even though he’s young, he has to protect his status and take responsibility for success and also for the problems the team is facing.
“He needs to ask the coach to stop putting him right, left, up, down, striker, or on the right. He needs to say, ‘No, I want to play as a number 10. I am capable of it, adapt the system to me.’
“So he’s not yet a killer. Talented, but no killer.”
Marcel Desailly was talking exclusively to MrRaffle.com
