Joe Cole hails ‘absolute genius’ Cole Palmer with Lionel Messi comparison

Chelsea talisman Cole Palmer once again stepped up on the big stage to inspire Enzo Maresca’s side to a stunning fightback victory in the Europa Conference League final

Cole Palmer was likened to Lionel Messi after conjuring up more magic in the Europa Conference League final as Chelsea became the first team in history to win all four major Uefa honours.

The Blues were caught cold in Poland by Real Betis, who came flying out of the blocks and should have gone in at the break with more than a one goal advantage. But Enzo Maresca oversaw a stunning second half fightback as Chelsea went on to win the game 4-1 to ensure the Italian signed off his maiden campaign with a trophy.

Enzo Fernandez, Nicolas Jackson, Jadon Sancho and Moises Caicedo grabbed the all important goals but Palmer, 23, was an influential figure throughout and grabbed assists for the Blues’ first two strikes.

The England star was unsurprisingly singled out post-match by former Chelsea favourite Joe Cole who compared Palmer to the iconic Messi following another dazzling display.

“He’s a genius at work,” Cole told TNT Sports post-match. “It’s a privilege to watch this kid play football. Not just Chelsea fans, England fans too.

READ MORE: Cole Palmer steps up in Chelsea’s hour of need and decides Conference League finalREAD MORE: Enzo Maresca explains Conference League final call which left Chelsea star ‘devastated’

“If Lionel Messi performed like this on a stage like this, the world stops. We’ve got a player with quality that should have teams built around him for Chelsea and England in my opinion. An absolute genius.”

Mark Schwarzer, the former Chelsea goalkeeper, joined Cole in lauding Palmer after the game. He told BBC Radio 5 Live: “The balance of the team wasn’t right until Reece James, Levi Colwill and Jadon Sancho came on. Cole Palmer changed the way he played at that point, and he was looking for those runs.

“Palmer has delivered and that’s the difference. He is a young player, but has an incredible amount of maturity. He led this side and dictated that second half.”

Victory in Wroclaw enabled Maresca to finish his maiden campaign with a flourish after rubber-stamping qualification for next season’s Champions League at the weekend.

Speaking post-match, the Italian said: “I am very happy. I was a little bit frustrated in the first half because I think we approached the game in the wrong way. Also I expected a little bit, the happiness was a bit too much after Nottingham Forest because you go all season waiting and waiting [to achieve Champions League]. So we struggled a bit first half, second half we were much better and now we are very happy.”

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