Xabi Alonso has insisted that Cole Palmer remains committed to playing for England, revealing that Chelsea’s No 10 missed the international break because of a problem related to the groin injury that kept him out for much of last season. Palmer sat out four England matches over the past fortnight, but is fit to face Bournemouth on Saturday.
The withdrawal followed pointed criticism from Thomas Tuchel, who did not hide his disappointment after Palmer made himself unavailable for the start of England’s Nations League campaign last month. Tuchel said the 24-year-old “misses too many opportunities” to play for England and questioned whether Palmer wanted to be part of the squad.
Palmer’s absence, though, came for genuine reasons. He has won five caps since scoring against Spain in the Euro 2024 final, but struggled with persistent groin pain last season, which led to him missing out on a place in Tuchel’s World Cup squad. He felt minor irritation before Chelsea’s defeat by Brentford last month, and the condition still requires careful management.
Alonso was clear that the priority is Palmer’s fitness. “The most important thing for Cole is to be fully fit, that he enjoys his game, that he is feeling OK,” Chelsea’s manager said. “Whenever he is not, like in the Brentford game, we could see that he was struggling. He’s committed but he needs to be fully fit to play. We need him – the club and the national team.”
The current issue is nowhere near as severe as last season, when Palmer struggled even to shoot properly. Resting during the extended break has helped. “Now he’s fine,” Alonso said. “He’s been feeling better this week. We use the first two weeks for him to recover. It’s a little bit from the pubalgia he had.”
Whether Palmer returns to the England fold immediately is another matter. Tuchel has plenty of competition in attacking midfield, and it remains to be seen whether he selects Palmer for next month’s games against Croatia and Spain. Asked whether a player can be considered truly world class without playing international football, Alonso said: “Things happen naturally. When you show for your club that you are a top-level player and you have regularity, normally it is the natural way that you are part of the national team.”
Alonso was unmoved by the broadcaster Piers Morgan calling Palmer a bottle job for failing to represent England. “I don’t know the comment and I don’t know the guy,” he said.
Chelsea will need Palmer at his best. He has scored four goals this season, but the side has gone three league games without a win. Alonso also hopes that Reece James, Moisés Caicedo and Marco Palestra will return from injury against Bournemouth.