Cole Palmer was the main protagonist as Chelsea lifted the Club World Cup trophy after an emphatic 3-0 win over PSG in New Jersey. The Champions League holders were favourites to beat the Europa Conference League winners but Chelsea were rampant in the first half as they raced to a three goal lead. Palmer illuminated the final with two excellent goals and a clever assist for João Pedro as he cemented his billing as one of the best creative players in the world.
The England international was the coolest man in the sweltering heat in the United States as he produced two almost identical composed left-foot finishes into the bottom corner. Palmer had only scored two goals in his previous 29 games with his form unquestionably dipping across the last few months of the season but his quality remains undeniable. The 23-year-old was typically nonchalant as he collected his player of the tournament award from Donald Trump, before later being bewildered by the president’s presence on stage during the trophy lift. After an indifferent campaign, Palmer has still registered 32 goal contributions in 52 games and won two trophies but his performances in finals, across his career, have been exceptional.Cole Palmer’s incredible record in finals
“I like finals and it happened again,” Palmer said post-match. “Obviously it’s a great feeling. Even better because obviously everyone doubted us before the game.” Chelsea’s main man is underplaying his enjoyment of finals as his record in showpiece games is exceptional. Scoring goals or providing assists in any game is important but stepping up on the biggest stage, when jeopardy is at its highest, is the sign of a true world-class player. The Club World Cup triumph over PSG was the sixth final of Palmer’s professional career and he’s registered an incredible eight goal contributions.As the graphic below illustrates, Palmer has scored five goals and provided three assists across six finals, which calculates at an impressive 1.68 g/a per 90 minutes. Moreover, Palmer has six goal involvements in his last three finals and won match of the match as Chelsea won the Europa Conference League against Betis and the Club World Cup – he also scored in the Euro 2024 final for England. The only final that Palmer hasn’t provided a goal contribution in was Chelsea’s defeat to Liverpool in the 2024 League Cup. The first two finals of Palmer’s professional career arrived at Manchester City, netting against Arsenal in the Community Shield before scoring the winning goal against Sevilla in the Super Cup, before moving to Chelsea.
