Gary Lineker separates Phil Foden, Bukayo Saka and Cole Palmer as Man City called ‘stupid’ | Football | Sport

Palmer bagged a remarkable hat-trick in last week’s victory over Manchester United to help Chelsea complete one of the great Premier League comebacks. However, it seems Lineker is yet to be convinced that he belongs in the same category as the likes of Foden and Saka.

Discussing where the three players match up to each other on The Rest Is Football, Lineker asked: « Buy, bench or sell: Saka, Foden or Palmer? Who wants to go first? They’re all wonderfully talented, gifted players who we all love. »

Fellow pundit Micah Richards stepped up to offer his verdict, saying: « I’ll go first, I’ll set the standard. Buy Foden, bench Saka and sell Palmer. That’s what I’ll go with. »

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Lineker went on to agree with Richards as he weighed in on the debate, adding: « I’ll go along with that as well, but it makes me feel queasy to put Saka on the bench and sell Palmer. Who would want to sell a player that good? Only Man City would do something so stupid. »

Lineker and Richards are probably right, with Palmer yet to hit the heights of Foden and Saka despite being hugely influential for Chelsea this season. Foden has won everything there is to win during his time at City, while Saka has long been recognised as one of the Premier League’s best forwards in spite of Arsenal’s lack of recent silverware.

There is still every chance that Palmer could work his way into that bracket if he keeps developing on the same trajectory over the coming years. He looks certain to be rewarded for his impressive form with a place in the England squad for this summer’s Euros, while Mauricio Pochettino recently admitted that he was surprised by just how good Palmer has been.

Asked if the forward could now have a nine-figure transfer value, Pochettino replied: « It is not easy to talk. It is difficult to explain. Sometimes, expectation plays a very important role in a player when they are young. When we signed Palmer, no one expected him to perform in the way that he is performing. »