Cole Palmer might just be the truth, you know. If last season was nothing but a testament to the 22-year old’s unique and precious talent and skill set in football, it firmly established him amongst the best young players in the world. Some would argue he is the best young player in the world right now, with the exception of the Spanish wonderkid, Lamine Yamal.
The Chelsea midfielder registered an astounding and unfathomable 42 goal contributions with 27 goals and 14 assists across all competitions last season. (Stats by transfermarkt)
Palmer later, then, would only go onto win England’s Men’s Player of the Year, Chelsea Player of the Season, Premier League Young Player of the Season, PFA Fans’ Player of the Year and PFA Young Player of the Year, which just shows how good he is at this level, producing these outrageous numbers on the pitch while having that guile of a true magician at the feet.
If that was not anything, he has already registered 5 goals and 1 assist in 4 of this season’s 2024-25 season. If all of that is considered with the fact that he is merely just 22 years of age, one may only be amazed by the endless possibilities his unique skillset and talent could shape with time.
The Off-Field Impression: Navigating the ‘Dumb’ Shouts
While fans and pundits have (rightfully) plauded Palmer’s talent on the pitch, his impression amongst the general media is a bit different. In most media (Sky Sports) and his England post-game interviews, viewers across the social media space have found the Chelsea man to be a bit more ‘reserved’ and not ‘bothered’ with the questions that are being asked of him.
Some, based on his reactions in these interviews, even deemed him to be ‘too dumb’ to realize even his own greatness. The social media reaction initially was just capturing the sense of playful banter, but when some traditional media houses have started to deliberately script potential interviews to highlight the “dumb” shouts and gain traction, things might have taken a different turn now.
Media Trial: Sensationalism vs. Reality
When ITV hosted an interview with the England midfielder, he was asked a few questions, which were with this notion of portraying him as someone ‘slow’ or ‘less intelligent’ to understand things. But fans were quick to come out in defense for Cole by deeming the interview as too corny and forced, if scripted deliberately like that.
This has now led to a discussion wherein now users are trying to throw light in the difference between the sensationalism of him being actually ‘dumb’ or with the reality of that he simply might not be best in front of cameras. Which to be fair, he does not absolutely need to as long he is performing like this on the pitch.
Sibling Banter: Cole Palmer’s Fun Q&A with His Sister
So, in the light of all the above events, Cole Palmer’s sister recently carried out a prank on his brother in a recent Tik-Tok video and fans have expressed their views of how ‘cute’ the entire interaction was.
In the video, his sister could be seen asking random modern-age slangs and terminologies to check the Chelsea No 20’s common knowledge. Hallie Jennifer Palmer, later on then burst out of laughter along with his brother when he eventually called her out and busted her prank.
Palmer mentioned in the Q/A that he is aware of the “dumb” shouts in the online media space and joked around it, in a fun-loving form of banter. To this, fan have expressed their amazement that Palmer is indeed a sound lad, and maybe just not made for the cameras.
Cole Palmer: Silent Genius or Just a Media Misfit?
So, what is Cole Palmer, then? Is he someone who has a high acumen and secretly understands what the media and online viewers are trying to get at him with, or is he someone who is purely not media trained? The reality is that both of them might be true, but there is also this reality that none of them matter. It’s a fact to accept and ponder, because football and one’s opinion in this game has ever only decided on one factor and that is how you perform on the pitch.
As long as, Cole Palmer is embracing the authenticity in a world of noise, the memes will keep on coming like a never-ending highlight reel—just when you think it’s over, there’s always more!