⌚The Beginning:
Cole Palmer and Phil Foden’s journeys started similarly at Manchester City’s youth academy. Both players showcased immense potential, dazzling with their technical skills and vision. Despite their shared background, their careers took dramatically different paths.
During their time together at City, Palmer often played second fiddle to Foden. While Foden became Guardiola's golden boy, Palmer was seen as a promising talent who lacked a clear path to consistent first-team football.
🧠Pep’s Gamble:
In a surprising move, Pep Guardiola chose to sell Palmer to Chelsea in the summer transfer window. This decision puzzled many, as Palmer’s versatility and vision seemed like a perfect fit for City. By keeping Foden, Pep doubled down on his trust in Foden’s ability to fill key roles.
Guardiola’s gamble was bold but risky, as Palmer’s Chelsea performances have raised questions about what City may have lost. While City retained their faith in Foden, Palmer quickly showed he could have offered something unique.
🔥Explosion:
Since joining Chelsea, Palmer has taken the Premier League by storm, quickly establishing himself as one of the league’s brightest young talents. His performances have been marked by maturity, precision, and an ability to thrive under pressure. Palmer’s goals and assists have already played a significant role in Chelsea’s resurgence.
Not only has he become a fan favorite, but Palmer has also proven he can deliver consistently. In his short time at Chelsea, he’s racked up impressive statistics that are on par with, if not better than, Foden’s at City this season.
DataMB recorded more key passes (85.7), attacking actions (72.9), assists (89.4), expected goals and assists (99.0), and progressive carries than Phil Phoden in the 2023/2-24 season.
Not to say Foden is still very much the talent everyone including Pep thought he was. He is, just, Cole Palmer is making it clear he might be better.
Foden anchored City’s charge for the Premier League title, scoring a career-high 19 league goals along with eight (8) assists over the course of the last season’s league campaign. The 24-year-old was also a standout in Europe, finishing City’s Champions League campaign with five (5) goals and three (3) assists in only eight (8) appearances.
Foden, a two-time winner of the PFA Young Player of the Year Award, claimed the prize in both 2021 and 2022 but after that particular performance last season, he went on to claim the Professional Footballers' Association men's player of the year award for the first time.
For the same season, his former teammate, Cole Palmer claimed the PFA Young Player of the Year Award prize for the first time following an exceptional season, having 22 goals and 11 assists to his name, for the Blues after his move to Stamford Bridge from Manchester City.
According to DataMB, in the 2024/2025 season, made more key passes (99.6), progressive passes (63.9), progressive carries (86.1) and won more duels (64.7) and more defensive actions (5.8) than Phil Foden.
👀The Difference:
Palmer’s game differs from Foden’s in key ways, making him a standout talent. Unlike Foden, who thrives in fluid attacking roles, Palmer excels with composure and control, dictating the tempo and delivering decisive passes. He possesses a calm, clinical edge that Foden sometimes lacks in high-stakes situations.
While Foden’s most impressive qualities are his shooting ability and how he protects the ball in his possession, Palmer’s vision which makes him an incredible creator from deep, his dribbling, decision-making set him apart. Why because Palmer has shown from his games that he can match Foden’s shooting and ball retention.
According to Squawka, in this ongoing season of 2024/2025, Cole Palmer from the 9 games he has played for Chelsea in the EPL, 3 more than Foden, has more goals (7-0), winning goals (2-0), non-penalty goals (6-0), assist (5-0), chances created (24-11), and take-ons (9-3) than Foden.
As a matter of fact, he does not only out-perform Phil Foden in basically every single metric, but he makes the case that Man City and Pep Guardiola may have bet on the wrong horse and kept the player they thought was him.
🔗You can follow & check out today’s Palmer & Foden games on MSport.
