Troy Deeney has shared that he loves one of the things interim England manager Lee Carsley has already done with a Chelsea player.
Lee Carsley, 50, is currently taking charge of his first international camp as England’s senior manager, which is a position he’s filling on a temporary basis for now. Interestingly, three Chelsea players were included in the Three Lions squad.
Cole Palmer was an obvious pick in the group for England’s Nations League fixtures in September. He was joined by Blues teammates Levi Colwill and Noni Madueke as well, with the latter called up to the seniors for the first time ever.
Unfortunately, Palmer did withdraw from the England camp earlier this week after just one day. Journalist Simon Phillips reports via Substack that Palmer’s left the England squad because of tightness in his groin, but Chelsea are optimistic he won’t miss any football for them.
Troy Deeney notices Cole Palmer detail
Troy Deeney has spotted a detail in Carsley’s England announcement that delighted him.
He’s thrilled to see Chelsea’s Palmer was listed as a midfielder rather than an attacker, which suggests the plan was to use him more centrally in a No.10 role before his withdrawal.
Deeney said on Up Front’s YouTube channel: “When you see Lee’s teams, it’s normally two 10s, as opposed to two sitters. The thing I did like was he put Cole Palmer and the like as midfielders; normally they go in as attackers.”
What is Cole Palmer’s best position?
Palmer is proving every week that he’s an exquisite footballer, so much so that England surely has to find a position for him in the best XI moving forward. It’s incredibly frustrating that he’s missing this set of international matches through injury, but it sounds like a sensible move from both the club and player.
Palmer played a lot of football last season as a right-winger, although he had licence to drift centrally. Now, we’re seeing his starting position at Chelsea is a central No.10 behind the striker.
He’s been the heartbeat of Chelsea’s team since his arrival from Manchester City a year ago, so playing him in the middle of the pitch to get him on the ball as much as possible is a no-brainer.
On paper, if England are to play with two No.10s, you could fit Palmer and Jude Bellingham in the same XI. You could then use Bukayo Saka and Phil Foden on the wings, but we’re sure the latter would rather operate centrally as well.
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