Cole Palmer reveals that first-team football was a major factor in his move from Man City to Chelsea… as England U21 star admits it was a ‘huge decision’ to leave the Treble winners

Cole Palmer’s decision to leave Manchester City came after the promise of more opportunities at Chelsea.

The forward, who starred in midfield for England Under-21s in Monday’s win in Luxembourg, has made 41 appearances for City but only three of those have been Premier League starts.

Palmer assessed his situation after scoring the crucial equalizer in last month’s Super Cup win against Sevilla and suspected his playing time under Pep Guardiola would not improve.

Chelsea had already shown cautious interest earlier this summer and intensified it before the deadline, landing the 21-year-old in a shock £42.5million move.

“I’m not saying I avoided the competition (for places at City) because I’ve never done that,” Palmer said. ‘I had been there for a few years (around the first team) and wanted to get more opportunities to play – in my position and to have more impact.

Palmer admitted he wanted more playing opportunities than what City had offered

‘It was a huge decision. When I left the training ground on Thursday I knew I was going to London the next day. It all hit me, I sat in the car and started driving away. I was just like, “You’ve been here 15 years.”

‘I don’t know any other way. I have never been loaned out. I never moved from Manchester. The only time I’ve ever been outside of Manchester is on holiday or away games. Going there feels strange, but there’s no time to waste. I have to go there.’

Raheem Sterling, Levi Colwill and Noni Madueke all lobbied for Palmer to join them at Stamford Bridge. Palmer made his debut last week, coming off the bench in a midfield role as Chelsea chased the match against Nottingham Forest.

Lee Carsley looks set to use him more regularly as England look to defend their European Championship title.

“I love playing there,” Palmer added. ‘There’s a lot of extra responsibility and I have to work on areas of my game where I need to improve so I can get to the next level. I didn’t think about the price. I just want to enjoy football.

‘Chelsea explained the project, I thought it was a nice project. I feel like I can have an impact. I’ve only been there for two days: I trained on Friday and played on Saturday, so I don’t know what it’s like yet. I’m going to get a better feel for it.

‘Hopefully I can go back soon to see the boys from City’s academy side, there are still staff who have been with me since I was six years old. It would be nice to see them. When we play against City at Stamford Bridge and the Etihad, I can say goodbye properly and say thank you.’