Cole Palmer may have broken Manchester City hearts again after revealing he is a lifelong Manchester United fan. The Chelsea star says Wayne Rooney was his idol growing up despite spending 13 years man and boy at rivals City.
Palmer made 41 first-team appearances for City before leaving on transfer deadline day in the summer. Chelsea snapped him up on a deal worth up to £42.5million including add-ons.
He came back to haunt his old club on Sunday, scoring the late equaliser in a Premier League classic at Old Trafford. Palmer kept his cool from the penalty spot to draw the match level at 4-4.
But to make matters worse for City fans, Palmer has since admitted it wasn’t them whom he supported as a youngster – but United instead. And the Red Devils’ all-time goalscorer Rooney was his inspiration.
Palmer said: “What a player. When I was growing up I used to watch all the football and the one that sticks in my mind is Rooney. Ever since I was a little kid he has been my footballing hero.”
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Palmer made 25 appearances in City’s treble-winning campaign last term. However, much of those came as a substitute, with just two starts in the Premier League.
Phil Foden followed a similar path from the academy into the City first team and was patient waiting for his chance. Palmer respected City’s model but admitted he needed to move to gain more senior experience.
He said: “You can take inspiration from [Foden] — but not everyone is the same. People have different paths. City’s thing is not to let you go out on loan, which I respect.
“That’s the thing that they do, try to keep you around the first team and learn from the best players. I need a run of games.”
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Palmer has already scored four goals in a Chelsea shirt and has become a regular starter for Mauricio Pochettino, earning a first call-up to the England squad this week. Former City defender Micah Richards says the 21-year-old has made the best decision for his career.
He said on The Rest Is Football podcast: “I think it was right for him because he is not going to a team that isn’t going to challenge, he has got a great manager and he’s at a club that is going to spend a lot of money. He’s becoming the main man.
“He was never going to be the main man at Manchester City. We have talked so much about (Phil) Foden and if he can become that and it’s taken him a while and he’s dipped in form a little bit – he played well on Sunday.
“But when you have Foden, (Jeremy) Doku, (Jack) Grealish, Bernardo Silva and (Julian) Alvarez, he has to go and play. I am gutted and devastated that he is not a Manchester City player, but I am happy he is doing so well.”
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