Chelsea fans shower accolades on their new signing for his performance

At the time, Chelsea’s deadline day signing of Cole Palmer from Manchester City felt like an afterthought. The Stamford Bridge club have spent roughly £1 billion on new signings over the last two years and so it was difficult to envisage how Palmer - an untested youngster - would fit into Mauricio Pochettino’s team.

Only a few months on, though, Palmer is Chelsea’s most important player. He has proven this in a number of eye-catching performances for his new team this season with the 21-year-old the match-winner for the Blues in Saturday’s 2-0 home win over Sheffield United - Palmer registered a goal and an assist.

Chelsea have struggled for consistent results in the Premier PINC League, but they’d be much worse off were it not for Palmer. He has quickly become their primary creative force with Pochettino pushing him into a number 10 position against Sheffield United to further bolster his influence through the middle of the pitch.

Even when positioned on the right side, so much of Chelsea’s attacking play flows through Palmer. Pochettino likes to give the 21-year-old freedom to cut inside to create central overloads and open up space for the right back - either Reece James or Malo Gusto - on the overlap. The system has worked well.

“So soon to talk too much, we need to be calm, very talented player, getting more mature and experience,” Pochettino said when asked about Palmer’s impact at Chelsea. “He has the capacity to be the playmaker that can link with his team-mates, very important for us in the way we want to play. Not talk too much as need to give the time to learn and improve and see in few years if he will be the big player we saw.”

Pochettino’s Chelsea team remains a work-in-progress. Few expect the Blues to challenge for a top four place and Champions League qualification this season, but the building blocks are being put in place for long-term success. The signing of Palmer has set a precedent for the Stamford Bridge club.

Palmer is the sort of player Chelsea should be signing. They need talented youngsters they can build around for years to come and Palmer certainly fits the bill in that regard. He is technically excellent and has the intelligence to play the modern game. Chelsea need more players in his profile.

Christopher Nkunku’s return from injury will give Pochettino a selection headache with the French attacker most comfortable in Palmer’s position, but the young England international has surely done enough to keep his place in the team. Chelsea have got very little value for money in the transfer market recently. Palmer is the exception.