Tim Sherwood has heaped praise on Chelsea superstar Cole Palmer but insists he is not the only ‘incredible’ talent at Stamford Bridge.
Palmer has emerged as one of the best players in Europe since his £40m move from Manchester City in the summer of 2023, scoring 29 goals in 42 Premier League games.
The 22-year-old, who is contracted to Chelsea until 2033, has also provided 17 assists since his arrival at Stamford Bridge, more than any other player in the English top-flight.
Sherwood says Palmer’s form for the Blues has been ‘incredible’ but the ex-Premier League manager holds Chelsea team-mate Romeo Lavia in similar regard and says he can become a ‘top-class midfield player’.
Chelsea saw off competition from Premier League rivals Liverpool to sign Lavia from Southampton in 2023 but the 20-year-old only made one appearance last season due to a series of injury setbacks.
Lavia started Chelsea’s Premier League opener against Manchester City in August and has begun to feature regularly again after spending two more spells in the treatment room.
A number of pundits have been pleasantly surprised by Lavia’s form and Sherwood believes he has the potential to become a ‘top-drawer midfielder’.
‘It’s incredible,’ Sherwood said on The Seaman Says podcast with Betway when asked about Palmer.
‘I mean, he’s just plays at his own pace. I saw him last year in a very poor Chelsea side and I remember saying to him afterwards, “you just need to build a team around you and then you need a support act.”
‘I think [Chelsea boss Enzo] Maresca’s gone in and there certainly has been an upturn there, and he seems to have a group of players who he trusts now.
‘Romeo Lavia, for me, is going to be a top-drawer, top-class midfield player. I think he’s incredible as well.
‘Every time he gets the ball, he just looks to see where Cole is and he just shifts it two yards to the right and threads it through the hole to him.
‘Once he gets behind the midfield on his back foot and he faces the defenders, it scares them to death because the Chelsea forwards, all of a sudden start moving and he finds a pass and the weight of pass and the correct timing of the pass as well.’
Sherwood says Palmer is a ‘dream’ to play with and believes he has provided an early selection headache to new England boss Thomas Tuchel.
‘For me, it’s very, very difficult for Thomas Tuchel, the England manager now, to pick between this group of players,’ Sherwood added.
‘They’ve got so many No. 10s, but for me, he’s the pick of all of them. He’s becoming world class but he needs to do it on a more consistent basis.
‘And I think he will do that. The best No. 10 I ever played against was Dennis Bergkamp and he will have Dennis’ qualities, on that back foot.
‘You ask [Ian] Wrighty who played up-front with him, it was a dream because he would just give you the ball when you need it, not when he’s finished with it.
‘I think Cole’s becoming that and he’s adding numbers to his game with his assists and goals.’
Maresca has made an impressive start to his Chelsea tenure but two defeats in four games has seen the Blues crash out of the Carabao Cup and lose ground in the top-four race.
Chelsea return to action on Sunday against Manchester United, who look set to be managed by interim boss Ruud van Nistelrooy following Erik ten Hag’s sacking earlier in the week.
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