Mauricio Pochettino admits Chelsea star was 'disappointed' with his lack of game time in recent England friendlies
Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino has revealed that Cole Palmer was disappointed at not being able to feature for England in the recent international friendlies against Brazil and Belgium.
Pochettino has revealed that Palmer was unable to feature in the 0-1 defeat to Brazil at Wembley due to a minor injury. On the other hand, the youngster was left on the bench by Gareth Southgate for the Belgium clash.
Palmer has been in great form for the Blues since his reported £42.5 million summer move from Manchester City. He has scored 14 goals and has provided 12 assists in 34 matches and has been a crucial cog in Pochettino's side's attack.
He is also looking to nail down a spot in the England squad for the upcoming UEFA Euro 2024 in the summer. Thus, missing the games in the last international break ahead of the tournament is disappointing for Palmer.
Speaking about the attacking midfielder, Pochettino said (via Metro):
"I was talking to him, yes, he's a little bit disappointed because he couldn't play for the national team. I think the first game he had a small problem. I think he though he could play in the second game against Belgium but he didn't play."
Pochettino, though, said that Palmer is training well and is on course to be available for Chelsea's Premier League home clash against Burnley on Saturday, March 30. The Argentine manager said:
"Now he's okay, he's training well. Still one more training session tomorrow, but I think the plan is if he follows tomorrow in the same way I think he'll be availble for the game on Saturday."
England manager Gareth Southgate's words on Chelsea star Cole Palmer's lack of playing time
England manager Gareth Southgate was also questioned about Chelsea star Cole Palmer's absence from the game against Belgium. Southgate highlighted that there's a lot of competition in the squad.
He further hinted that Palmer missing training through injury played a role in his decision. Speaking on the matter, the England boss said (via Metro):
"I said when I named the squad that there is competition for places in those wide areas. A bit of a shame that Cole Palmer missed so much training that we weren't able to put him in the game [vs. Belgium]."
Southgate added:
"We weren't 100% certain what we could get whereas with Gordon we know, with Maddison we knew. I wouldn't rule Cole out of that equation."
Despite his absence from the recent international break, Cole Palmer could be on the plane to Germany for the Euros if he continues his rich vein of form for Chelsea.