Palmer reveals Alonso's free role is already unlocking his best Chelsea form

Cole Palmer has credited Xabi Alonso with reviving his Chelsea career after just one competitive match, saying the new manager has handed him a free role that was absent under his predecessors.

Palmer scored and assisted in Chelsea’s 3-2 Premier League victory over Fulham on Monday night, a result that opened the club’s league campaign and offered an early indication of the attacking intent Alonso is building at Stamford Bridge.

“He just said I’d have more freedom to drift about the pitch,” Palmer explained. “Just like you saw with the goal I scored. Last season, I wouldn’t have even made that run because it’s not a ‘safe zone’. But he’s saying move across that zone, drop into play, come get on the ball, create and just do what you do.”

The 24-year-old had been one of the Premier League’s standout performers in his debut Chelsea season, but struggled for form and fitness in 2024-25 — a campaign that ended with the club finishing 10th and saw both Enzo Maresca and Liam Rosenior dismissed.

Alonso arrived at the start of the summer and has been backed heavily in the transfer market. Morgan Rogers joined from Aston Villa for more than £100m, adding a physical presence to complement Palmer’s technical qualities and Joao Pedro’s all-round ability. The three have already been nicknamed “JP Morgan” by sections of the Chelsea support, though Palmer was quick to distance himself from the branding.

“It’s a rubbish name,” he said. “We need to come up with something better than that. I think we’ve got a different mix of qualities. Joao can do a bit of everything. Morgan’s more physical and I’m more technical, so I think we’ve got a good balance.”

Palmer’s omission from England’s World Cup squad had underlined the stakes heading into this season. A return to the form that made him one of the division’s most dangerous players in 2023-24 would go a long way toward restoring his international standing — and, on the evidence of Monday’s opener, Alonso’s system appears designed to bring out exactly that.