Every team that comes up against Chelsea will now understandably be worried about Cole Palmer, but it seems as if something else is making Eddie Howe and Newcastle wary.
Cole Palmer has alerted the whole of the Premier League with his performances so far this season, especially his four-goal display against Brighton and Hove Albion.
He’s been that good that even Jamie Carragher suggested that Liverpool could win the Premier League if they had Cole Palmer in their ranks.
His six goals and five assists have all come in the Premier League, but a disappointing performance last time out against Liverpool will make him hungry to improve.
Frank Lampard even admitted that Palmer was off his game against Liverpool.
However, that hasn’t stopped the midfielder from being the focus of a question aimed towards Eddie Howe in his pre-match press conference.
Eddie Howe shares what else he’s concerned about at Chelsea
Chelsea showed against Panathinaikos that they have multiple attacking threats, as the likes of Mykhailo Mudryk, Christopher Nkunku and Joao Felix all got on the scoresheet.
When speaking in his press conference (as per Chronicle Live), Eddie Howe was asked about Cole Palmer ahead of Newcastle’s trip to Stamford Bridge.
He admitted he’s well aware of Cole Palmer but Chelsea have other players that can hurt his side.
“Cole’s been been excellent this season and last season. His numbers are very, very good. We’re certainly aware of his strengths and what he brings to to Chelsea.
“But again, they’re one of those teams that if you focus on one player, they have other players, that will really hurt you as well.
“So it’s about getting the information across to the players that we need to. As always with these games you have to bring a strength and be a threat yourself.
“And I do believe we have the players to do that but we certainly need to be defensively solid.”
Who are the Newcastle players to watch out for?
The two that spring to mind are Alexander Isak and Anthony Gordon.
Isak put in a disappointing display last time out for the Magpies against Brighton, as he failed to get involved in the game and looked leggy after returning from injury.
However, Howe admitted that he has been putting in the extra work to get up to speed this week in training, so Chelsea may face a different version of the Swede.
Gordon will be buoyed by the fact he recently put pen to paper on a new long-term deal at St James’ Park.
He’s always a threat on the left-hand side of Newcastle attack, with his pace and dribbling ability causing nightmares for even the best of defenders.
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