Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca has dismissed any notion that Manchester City underestimated Cole Palmer before selling him last year, insisting the club always knew what they had in the now-thriving attacker throughout his time there.
Softfootball understands that Maresca previously worked with Palmer during his time in City’s academy setup, giving him a close-up view of the player’s development long before his eventual move to Stamford Bridge in west London.
Since arriving at Chelsea, Palmer has become one of the standout performers in the Premier League, a rise that has drawn plenty of scrutiny over why City chose to let him leave in the first place.
Maresca said:
Everyone in City knew how good Cole is. The only problem is that when there are so many players, it’s hard to give them all minutes, so no one in City thought Cole wasn’t good enough, no doubt about it.
