The west Londoners suffered heartbreak at Wembley on Sunday (Picture: Getty)
Fans are convinced Manchester City aimed a dig at former player Cole Palmer after Chelsea were beaten in extra-time in the final of the Carabao Cup against Liverpool.
The west Londoners were second best for much of the first half at Wembley but had a great opportunity to open the scoring through Palmer only for the youngster to be denied by Caoimhin Kelleher.
Both teams hit the woodwork on multiple occasions in a frantic and end-to-end contest, and Palmer was again involved in a late goal-mouth scramble that Liverpool somehow survived.
Chelsea seemed to have a young and injury-hit Liverpool side on the ropes towards the end of the 90 minutes, but they sat off in extra-time as the Merseysiders re-took control of the contest.
Mauricio Pochettino’s side were punished for their passiveness in the 118th minute, with Virgil van Dijk rising highest to glance home a corner and secure a 1-0 win.
Within minutes of the final whistle being blown, City posted a tweet on social media platform X – formerly known as Twitter – that caused quite a stir.
Palmer, who used to play at the Etihad, has earned the nickname ‘Cold Palmer’ this season thanks to his composure and coolness under pressure.
Palmer fist-bumps Chelsea co-owner Todd Boehly (Picture: Getty)
He has even adopted a celebration to go alongside his nickname, putting his hands under his armpits and pretending to shiver.
So when City sent out a tweet just as Palmer was collecting his runners-up medal with three ‘freezing’ emojis alongside a picture of Phil Foden standing in a cryotherapy chamber, it caused quite a commotion.
To make things even more pointed, Foden had his hands tucked under his armpits – the very pose Palmer has become so noted for and which he did when he scored against City from the spot at Stamford Bridge.
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The tweet, whether deliberate or purely coincidental, went viral – racking up 2.8million views – and was taken by many fans to be a dig at Palmer.
While City supporters praised the account for ‘trolling’ Palmer, others suggested it was poor form to be digging out a player who spent over a decade at the club, first joining at under-eight level.
‘Tolling your boy? Have some class,’ wrote The Peak Santi. Another added: ‘Trolling your own boy? Yeah you guys would never be rated among top clubs.’
Chelsea and Palmer only have a couple of days to lick their wounds before taking on Leeds United in the FA Cup on Wednesday, while Manchester City are away at Luton Town in their own fifth-round tie.
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