Malo Gusto expresses a preference for the ‘exceptional’ Cole Palmer at Chelsea over the prolific goal-scorer Erling Haaland from Manchester City.
Palmer achieved an impeccable hat-trick within the initial 29 minutes of Chelsea’s overwhelming 6-0 victory over Everton at Stamford Bridge.
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The young 21-year-old talent, who transferred from Man City to Chelsea the previous summer, secured his fourth goal through a penalty in the latter half, equating his tally with Haaland’s at 20 league goals in the contest for the Golden Boot.
While Palmer was already held in high regard at the Etihad, his stellar performance at Stamford Bridge has exceeded the expectations of even the most hopeful Chelsea supporters.
Gusto is thrilled to count the ‘special’ Palmer among his teammates and is adamant that he wouldn’t trade the English international for Haaland, who has an impressive record of 83 goals in 91 matches since his move to Manchester City in 2022.
When asked whether he would rather play with Cole Palmer or Haaland, Gusto said: ‘Cole, for sure.
‘We just have to help Palmer become the top scorer. He is special, and we are very happy to have this type of player on our team.’
Palmer’s hat-trick in the first half set a record as the quickest for a Chelsea player in the Premier League era, propelling him to become the team’s highest single-season goalscorer since the days of Diego Costa.
Conor Coady, the defender for Leicester City, acknowledges Palmer as the standout ‘shining light’ for Chelsea in a season otherwise marred by challenges in the Premier League.
Even with a recent upturn in form, Chelsea is positioned at ninth in the league standings, trailing the top four by 16 points and the frontrunners Manchester City by a substantial 36 points.
‘He is keeping Chelsea going a little bit this season,’ Coady said of Palmer on BBC Radio 5 Live. ‘He has been a bright spark for Chelsea.
‘What he is doing is fantastic. Everybody asked the question at the start of the season about whether he should be leaving [Manchester] City. He has shown everybody why he left City and why he is becoming the main man at Chelsea.’
