Pochettino Confirms Palmer as Chelsea’s Official Penalty Taker
Mauricio Pochettino has confirmed that Cole Palmer is now Chelsea’s official penalty taker after an on-field dispute during the club’s resounding 6-0 victory over Everton on Monday.
Chelsea enjoyed a commanding win against The Toffees, with summer recruit Cole Palmer netting four goals, including one from the penalty spot, Nicholas Jackson, and Alfie Gilchrist completed the rout.
Palmer achieved a remarkable feat by scoring a perfect hat-trick within the first 29 minutes of the match, setting a Premier League record for the fastest perfect hat-trick in history.
However, his outstanding performance was overshadowed by a brief altercation with teammates Nicolas Jackson and Noni Madueke over who should take the penalty. This incident marks the third time Chelsea players have publicly disputed penalty duties. Previous disagreements involved Raheem Sterling and Palmer, as well as a more recent clash between Palmer and Madueke during a 4-3 victory against Manchester United.
Following the intervention of acting captain Conor Gallagher, Palmer took and successfully converted the penalty, his fourth goal of the match.
Post-match, Coach Pochettino firmly stated that Palmer is the designated penalty taker and warned against future incidents of similar nature.
“Palmer is our penalty taker, and it won’t happen again. We can’t behave like children,” Pochettino declared. “It’s disappointing. I’ve made it clear to the players that this type of behavior is unacceptable and will not be tolerated again. Palmer has our full support as the penalty specialist.”
Palmer himself humorously commented on the tension: “I’m the designated penalty taker. I wanted to take it, so I did. Everyone wants to show responsibility. We ended up laughing about it afterward, but the manager has addressed the issue with us.”
This declaration should settle any future disputes and allow the team to focus on continuing their successful campaign without internal conflicts.
