Exclusive: Cole Palmer opens up on Euro 'surprise', Chelsea critics and the forgotten Blues star set to shock fans next season

Last summer eyebrows were raised when Cole Palmer, a then-fringe player at Manchester City, arrived at Chelsea for an initial £40million.

It was a move that took the Blues’ spending under the Todd Boehly-Clearlake Capital ownership to £1.02billion and one which critics used as further evidence of the club’s erratic recruitment strategy.

But in a topsy-turvy, chaotic campaign Palmer was a revelation, registering 22 goals and 11 assists to claim the Premier League’s Young Player of the Year and become only the third person aged 21 or younger in the competition’s history to record 30 or more goal involvements.

In turn, Palmer, a graduate of last year’s England Under-21 Euro triumph, was named in Gareth Southgate’s provisional 33-man squad for the summer’s senior competition.

A place on the plane is beyond doubt. A place in the starting line-up is a distinct possibility.

“I want to go to the Euros and be a part of the squad,” Palmer exclusively told SPORTbible. “I would not have imagined [being in the running this time last year].

“You’re sat there with all the other lads and a manager saying, ‘The aim will be to get to the senior squad’. But you’re looking at the senior squad thinking, ‘Oh, there are so many players [ahead of me].’

“I never doubted my ability, but there were a lot of factors that have contributed to [being in contention for the plane]. So I have surprised myself.”

Palmer has the talent and temperament to thrive in Germany. Amid disorder, he provided the required calm that saw Chelsea scrape into Europe this season.

Nine wins and four draws in the final 15 games of the season saw the club claim sixth place and a spot in next term’s UEFA Conference League.

“People saying we were not playing for the club,” Palmer said. “Claims that ‘no one cares’ were probably the hardest moments.

Palmer was named in England's provisional 33-man squad (Getty)

“It’s not nice, but you know yourself if you’re trying or not so we just needed to stick together as we did. The results in the past few games showed we were trying.”

Chelsea’s charge up the table featured one of the season’s most thrilling games, with Palmer acting as its protagonist.

In April, the Chelsea forward netted twice deep in stoppage time to complete his hat-trick and subject Manchester United, the team he grew up supporting, to a bruising 4-3 defeat at Stamford Bridge.

“For emotions, the 4-3 game against United at Stamford Bridge was probably my favourite moment,” Palmer admitted. “Chelsea had not beaten United for many years at Stamford Bridge and we needed to win to [challenge] for Europe. The way we won with a goal in the 100th and 101st minute was big for us.”

Palmer has been the star of Chelsea's season (Getty)

But despite Chelsea’s form at the end of the season, Pochettino departed the club by mutual consent last week. Leicester’s Enzo Maresca has been widely tipped to replace him, with the club hoping they can improve further under the Italian.

Indeed, Palmer has already identified a member of his Chelsea cohort that he expects to make a significant impact in the coming campaign - Romeo Lavia.

The Belgian signed for the Blues from Southampton for £53million last August but was restricted to just 32 minutes of competitive football in his debut season due to injury. It was a transfer representative of Pochettino’s testing and muddled year at Stamford Bridge.

“One person I’ve played with [who is good] is Romeo Lavia,” Palmer admitted.“We’ve not seen him this season because he’s been injured for a full year but I think he’s one that, when he gets playing everyone will think, ‘Oh, he’s really good’”.

Palmer was speaking to promote the Cif’s Re-Kicks initiative (Cif)

Palmer was speaking to promote the Cif’s Re-Kicks initiative, a project calling on people to donate their unwanted football boots to be cleaned and donated to underprivileged children.

On the project, Palmer said: “Growing up I saw how the cost to play football was a big problem for families and in some cases, not a reality. That’s why the Re-Kicks initiative is so important to me.

“By helping to keep young people involved in the sport, I hope to inspire them to keep chasing their dreams on and off the pitch.”

Teaming up with Palmer, Cif aims to provide free boots to budding young players, helping them to feel pitch-ready. Get involved by visiting https://cifkicks.promotigo.net/ where you can donate your boots.