Pep Guardiola has taken "responsibility" for Cole Palmer's summer departure from Manchester City, with the attacker preparing to return with Chelsea.
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Palmer joined Chelsea for £42.5mHas been in excellent formReturns to former club on SaturdayWHAT HAPPENED?
Palmer completed an unexpected £42.5 million ($53.5m) move to Stamford Bridge on deadline day and has excelled in his new surroundings. The versatile attacker has made 21 goal contributions in all competitions this season to date – adding to the two strikes he already had for City before he left – and earned himself a senior England call-up in November. He is set to figure prominently as he returns to his former club for the first time with Chelsea on Saturday.
AdvertisementGetty ImagesWHAT GUARDIOLA SAID
Speaking ahead of the visit of Mauricio Pochettino's side, Guardiola took "responsibility" for Palmer's exit and explained the reasons behind the decision to let him go.
"After two or three seasons he wanted more minutes than the last season. I understand completely," he said. "If Palmer had the minutes I gave to Phil [Foden] from the beginning, Cole Palmer would be here – but I didn't give them to him. That is my responsibility. Why? Because of Bernardo [Silva], Riyad [Mahrez], Phil. In that moment, I chose the other ones."
Guardiola added: "For young players, we always want them to stay but this is normal. After one season it is nice, and the second season, but the third season it is, 'Oh guys, I want to play, I don't want to sit on the bench'. It's normal. We understand as a club. We got an offer from an incredible top club like Chelsea and I'm really happy for him. In all clubs these types of things happen."
THE BIGGER PICTURE
Although Palmer's decision to move on has paid off on a personal level, he has been a bright spot in an otherwise disappointing season for Chelsea. They travel to the Etihad down in 10th in the Premier League table, although they do have a Carabao Cup final to look forward to next weekend.
City, meanwhile, are battling for top spot having made a habit of selling off their academy products to make 100 percent profit. Burnley's James Trafford and current Chelsea man Romeo Lavia are among those to be shifted in recent seasons, with the club raising more than £260m ($328m) from young players they have developed.
Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT FOR PALMER & CITY?
Palmer will be desperate to make an impact on his return to Manchester. He has proven to be a big-game player for Pochettino so far, scoring against Arsenal, Tottenham, Manchester United and in the reverse fixture against City. The hosts, though, will be firm favourites, as they look to close the gap to league leaders Liverpool.
