My responsibility that Palmer left Man City – Pep Guardiola
The manager of Manchester City, Pep Guardiola, takes full accountability for Cole Palmer’s departure to join rivals Chelsea.
In September, the 21-year-old transferred from City to Chelsea in a deal potentially reaching £42.5m. There’s a possibility he could confront his former team at the Etihad Stadium this Saturday.
Following his departure from City, Palmer has earned his first two England caps and tallied 10 goals in the Premier League.
“After two or three seasons he wanted more minutes than the last season. I understand completely,” said Guardiola.
“If Palmer had the minutes I gave to Phil [Foden] from the beginning, Cole Palmer would be here – but I didn’t give them to him. That is my responsibility.
“Why? Because of Bernardo [Silva], Riyad [Mahrez], Phil. In that moment, I chose the other ones.”
Palmer, a product of City’s academy, started two Premier League matches in the 2022-23 season and made 12 substitute appearances as Guardiola’s team clinched the title.
Mahrez made a move to Saudi Arabian side Al-Ahli in a £30m deal in July. A month later, Palmer scored for City at Wembley in the Community Shield against Arsenal, although Arsenal eventually won 4-1 on penalties following a 1-1 draw.
Palmer also netted in the European Super Cup triumph over Sevilla. However, he only played for 10 minutes as a substitute in City’s first three Premier League games of the 2023-24 season before transferring to Chelsea on deadline day.
“For young players, we always want them to stay but this is normal,” added Guardiola.
“After one season it is nice, and the second season, but the third season it is, ‘Oh guys, I want to play, I don’t want to sit on the bench’.
“It’s normal. We understand as a club. We got an offer from an incredible top club like Chelsea and I’m really happy for him. In all clubs these types of things happen.”
Palmer secured Chelsea’s late equalizer against City from the penalty spot during their 4-4 draw at Stamford Bridge in November.
He currently leads Chelsea’s scoring charts this season with 12 goals across all competitions and tops the assists leaderboard with nine. Guardiola expressed no astonishment at his achievements.
“We knew the quality he has and the impact he has shown this season is enormous,” added the Spaniard.
“It is not just goals and assists, it is the quality. He is an incredible threat for Chelsea. In the future you will not forget. It looks easy, but it’s not.”
Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino, whose side sit 10th, eight places behind Manchester City, felt the prospect of Palmer playing against his old side would not provide extra motivation.
“He’s not the type of player that needs to prove anything,” said Pochettino.
“I think he really is very grateful for his period at Manchester City, [but] he left because he wanted to find another challenge and to have the possibility to play more.
“Man City have an amazing squad. [Clubs] make decisions that we think are the best for the team. It doesn’t mean someone is not a good player.
“Players want to leave and you can’t stop them because you can’t provide the game time. It’s unfair to say they’re going to regret it.
“Man City are one of the best teams in the world and it’s not easy to find the space to play for a young guy.”