Chelsea's Cole Palmer stuck in a rut as his struggles continue vs Southampton – Premier League hits and misses

Palmer is stuck in a rut

Chelsea’s hammering of Southampton provided the perfect platform for some of Enzo Maresca’s underperforming stars to rediscover their confidence. But that wasn’t the case for Cole Palmer.

The 22-year-old has now not managed to score a goal for seven games. Even his creativity has dried up. It’s been a 14-game stretch without an assist for Chelsea’s talisman.

It wasn’t for the want of trying, either. Palmer had seven shots against Southampton, more than any other player on the pitch. Nothing was quite falling for him.

For the first time in his professional career, Palmer finds himself in a rut. And he doesn’t know how to get out of it just yet.

Palmer’s underlying numbers heading into this game suggested the problem didn’t just lie solely with him. No player in the league had created as many chances as him in the 13 games preceding this one.

Tuesday night’s game, however, revealed a player short on confidence. Easy to forget, being just moments before Chelsea’s first two goals, but Palmer had two glaring chances spurned.

Aaron Ramsdale stopped the first one, but half the goal was gaping for Palmer to score. Then he seemed in two minds over shooting and passing when played in down the right.

Palmer has more than enough credit in the bank to shrug off this run. It is the first dip in a glittering first 18 months in senior football as a regular starter in which he has barely put a foot wrong.

Maresca has little doubt that this moment will soon pass. “All the big players go through bad moments where they struggle to score,” said the Chelsea boss after the game.

“At this moment, Cole struggles to score or struggles to the right thing, but he’s happy. He knows this is something normal.

“It is lucky because Cole had time in a big club with big players and knows players go through moments like this. He’s reacting perfectly, he is laughing. He has to enjoy football.”

But tougher tests lie ahead for Chelsea and they will need their star man to find his way out of this hole if they are to be serious contenders for Champions League qualification.
Zinny Boswell

Away form wrecking Villa’s season

Aston Villa have a favourable Champions League last-16 tie against Club Brugge to look forward to next month. On this evidence, they should enjoy their participation in the competition while it lasts.

Their chances of qualifying for it again took a huge hit with their 4-1 defeat to Crystal Palace, a result which leaves them 10th and highlights, again, their struggles away from Villa Park. It’s now seven losses from their last nine Premier League away games. Their record on the road is the sixth-worst in the division this season.

It is not sustainable for a side with genuine aspirations of Champions League qualification to rely so heavily on their home form but there is little evidence of the situation improving.

In fact, this was probably their worst defeat yet. Palace tore through them repeatedly. The scoreline did not flatter them. Morgan Rogers took his goal brilliantly in front of the watching Thomas Tuchel but that was the only positive on a dismal night which also featured a potential injury to goalkeeper Emi Martinez.

Unai Emery must find a solution to their struggles on the road swiftly given their next two Premier League games take place at Brentford’s Gtech Community Stadium and Brighton’s Amex. There is also the small matter of that trip to Brugge to contend with. Right now, their away form is threatening to ruin their campaign.
Nick Wright

Wharton stars as Tuchel watches on

With England boss Thomas Tuchel watching on, it was somewhat perfect timing for Adam Wharton to make a long-awaited return to the Crystal Palace starting eleven.

It was some display too, the 21-year-old slotted seamlessly back into the Palace midfield, having a hand in three of the Palace goals while also making more final-third passes than any other Palace player with 14.

Oliver Glasner said after the game it was a rusty start for the midfielder, who would then acclimatise after a four-month lay-off.

“He played excellent,” Glasner said.

“When you see the second goal, with his pass to Eberechi Eze. This is his quality, his pre-orientation. It’s also one of our habits, winning the ball on the half-right side, passing to the half-left, and you have one or two touches, and he has the quality to find the player, he has the quality to execute the pass in the right way.

Wharton was the forgotten man as an unused member of Gareth Southgate’s 26-man Euros squad last summer, but he’s given Tuchel a performance to remember as Palace put Aston Villa to the sword.
William Bitibiri

Minteh the unsung hero who set the tone for Brighton

Brighton might just be onto something special between now and the end of the campaign based on their fantastic front four that is rocking and rolling right now. Georgino Rutter dazzled in the pocket, dovetailing with Joao Pedro to devastating effect at times. There is a wavelength there that makes Brighton such a dangerous team.

Kaoru Mitoma offers such quality out wide too but it was the performance of Yankuba Minteh without the ball that caught the eye. He was phenomenal out of possession in terms of work-rate and making sure Tariq Lamptey wasn’t overrun by Antoine Semenyo.

Minteh made an incredible seven tackles in the match – the most of any player. Not bad for someone who is supposed to be playing as a winger. His enthusiasm to muck in set the tone for Brighton to register a huge three points.
Lewis Jones

Sessegnon reminds everyone he’s still a force to be reckoned with

Ryan Sessegnon has had to be extraordinarily patient. His previous Premier League start came for Tottenham in a 2-0 defeat to Arsenal over two years ago. Fifty-eight seconds into his next start in the competition, he had his big moment, scoring the opener.

Fulham fans know what their former boy wonder is capable of delivering, that precise finish into the far corner typical of so many that he has scored in the past, the catalyst behind their promotion in 2018 when he was the Championship Player of the Year.

“A player starting at 16 at a high level, I think all of us here and probably everybody that loves football in this country recognised at that moment that he was going to have an amazing career because he was a top, top, top talent,” said Fulham boss Marco Silva at Molineux.

But afterwards came the injuries, lots of them, and the odd career misstep too. Now 24, he is back at Craven Cottage and rebuilding. Finally afforded an opportunity to start after encouraging signs in the cup competitions, he showed that he can still be a force.

“You have to keep him healthy,” added Silva. “He needs to be confident again, on the rhythm again, the intensity and the demands of the Premier League because the other things he has.”

A goal in a third consecutive away win will help Sessegnon a lot.
Adam Bate