Chelsea have ‘huge concern’ over Cole Palmer after what happened vs Arsenal
Liam Rosenior has been given cause for concern over Cole Palmer after the Chelsea star’s performance at the Emirates Stadium.
Despite five goal contributions against Wolves and Leeds United, the 23-year-old has yet to return to his best form, which saw the England international rack up 15 goals and 11 assists last season.
Palmer missed a huge chunk of the 2025-26 campaign after starring at the Club World Cup, missing most of October and November, leaving Enzo Maresca without his biggest talent.
With Rosenior now in charge, he has been able to welcome the former Man City man back to the lineup, but against Arsenal on Sunday, 1 March, it was almost as if he wasn’t there.
After going down to 10 men thanks to a Pedro Neto red card, Palmer was replaced by Alejandro Garnacho for the closing stages, with many fans concerned by his performance.
Cole Palmer ‘isn’t right’ as Chelsea star struggles to find form
Palmer has never been on the winning side against the Gunners, so victory was always going to be a tough ask, but Henry Winter spotted something more serious about the talented playmaker.
Taking to X (2 March), Winter wrote: “Cole Palmer is a magnificent footballer, voted 8th in the 2025 Ballon d’Or, a force in major finals, but clearly not at his fluid, confident, game-changing best currently.
“That’s a huge concern for Chelsea and England. Whether it’s a niggling groin issue, a deeper fatigue or he’s simply regaining sharpness after a thigh problem, Palmer isn’t right by his high standards.”
Reece James was by far the Blues’ most dangerous player in North London, firing in plenty of crosses and corners for his teammates to attack, while Palmer was nowhere to be seen, sadly.
Palmer’s worrying stats speak for themselves vs Arsenal
In 86 minutes, Palmer had just 39 touches, a far cry from his average of 56.5, created zero chances, only had one off-target shot, completed zero per cent of his dribbles and was dispossessed once [FotMob].
He also lost 78 per cent of his ground duels, made three fouls, picking up a yellow card, only had two touches in the opposition’s box and was substituted before the final whistle.
It was a difficult evening for all involved at the Emirates, but even moreso for the England international, who went without a goal contribution for the second game running after Burnley last time out.
The prospect of going to the 2026 World Cup could also be falling away in front of the player’s eyes, and that is unlikely to boost his performances due to the sheer pressure of it all.