Enzo Maresca names 'best thing' about Cole Palmer | OneFootball

Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca has hailed Cole Palmer's mentality, praising the young superstar for remaining the same down-to-earth talent he worked with back at Manchester City.

After moving to Stamford Bridge in 2023, Palmer quickly established himself as one of the Premier League's top talents, racking up 22 goals and 11 assists last season under former boss Mauricio Pochettino.

Since the arrival of Maresca, who coached Palmer during his time at City, the 22-year-old has eight goals and six assists in just 13 games, and the new boss believes Palmer's selfless love of the game is behind his meteoric rise.

"The best thing is that he didn't change," Maresca told Sky Sports. "The way he was four or five years ago, he's exactly the same way. He loves football, he wants to play every game, he wants to use the ball in the [training] session every single moment. He's a fantastic guy."

Maresca left his coaching role at City a few months before Palmer's own departure to Chelsea and stressed that nobody at the Etihad Stadium had any doubts about the midfielder's potential.

"Everyone at City, they knew that Cole was top, no doubt," he continued. "The problem is that, with the amount of players they have there, it's more difficult to share minutes with all of them. But no doubt, everyone was aware of how good Cole is.

"He took his chances last year and this season."