Cole Palmer’s Unbelievable xG Stats in the First 60 Minutes Against Southampton

A Stunning Start to His Chelsea Career

Since joining Chelsea, Cole Palmer has been nothing short of sensational. Every shot seemed to find the back of the net, every pass clicked perfectly—it was almost magical. But football has a way of balancing itself out, and Palmer is experiencing that firsthand in a rather dramatic fashion.

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From Perfect Finishing to a Sudden Goal Drought

Palmer’s form has swung wildly—almost like a rubber band snapping back. At first, every attempt he made seemed to go in, but now, nothing is working in his favor.

This shift has become a self-fulfilling prophecy. The longer he goes without scoring, the more rushed and desperate his finishing becomes. A perfect example came just before Chelsea’s opening goal. One-on-one with the keeper, Palmer chose to shoot instead of squaring the ball to Christopher Nkunku, who had an open net. Had he been more composed, he would have made the easy pass. Fortunately for Chelsea, the resulting corner led to Nkunku scoring anyway.

Palmer Needs Just One Goal to Reignite His Confidence

As the saying goes, all Palmer needs is one goal—even if it bounces in off his backside. His expected goals (xG) for the first 60 minutes of this match alone stood at 0.97, an incredibly high number. In fact, one of his chances—a one-on-one—was the kind of opportunity you’d expect a player to convert 99 times out of 100.

BBC’s Nizaar Kinsella summed it up:

“The majority of Chelsea’s chances have fallen at his feet, and he has missed three good chances and two half-chances.”

There was still time for Palmer to get on the scoresheet, but his body language said it all. After missing yet another chance, he could only manage a wry smile—almost as if he had accepted that tonight just wasn’t going to be his night.