Ice Cold Palmer sets Premier League record with Panenka against Spurs

The Chelsea man has now scored 12/12 of his attempts from the spot – the best conversion rate in Premier League history.

Tottenham vs Chelsea is a fixture rarely lacking entertainment value. Last season we were treated to a five-goal thriller as the Blues prevailed 4-1 in north London, with two red cards and a flurry of action at the death as Nicolas Jackson netted an impressive 20-minute hat-trick from the 75th minute until the final whistle. 

Sunday’s encounter was a much closer affair but there were still goals aplenty in an enthralling battle which ended with seven goals being scored and two penalties awarded. Chelsea continued their resurgent form to move themselves to within just four points of leaders Liverpool (who have a game in hand due to their postponement against Everton), coming back from two goals behind to beat Ange Postecoglu’s side 4-3 in another top-flight classic. 

Yet again, it was Cole Palmer who stole the headlines. 

The England international put on a trademark display, dazzling the Tottenham defence to lead his side to victory from the depths of early despair. Palmer drew his side level just after the hour mark with a well-taken penalty – his first of the league campaign – before laying off Enzo Fernandez with a sumptuous assist 12 minutes later to put the west Londoners in front. With the game entering its final quarter, few believed the drama to be over – and that proved to be the case. 

Chelsea, not content with their one-goal advantage, continued to prod and probe at a Spurs defence which seem to consistently display their frailties at the most inopportune moments. Adding to his then 10-goal haul and determined to close the gap between himself, Erling Haaland and Mo Salah (both on 13 goals) at the top of the league’s goalscoring chart was of urgent importance to the 22-year-old, and as he jinked and janked around Pape Sarr in the Tottenham penalty area, you could almost hear a collective sharp intake of breath from the home support as their midfielder was drawn into a clumsy challenge to bring the Chelsea talisman down. 

Second spot-kick awarded to the visitors. Second time Palmer converted, but this time it was via a deft, ice cold Panenka chip right down the middle of Fraser Forster’s goal – the Spurs keeper had admitted defeat before the ball had even touched the net. It was a perfect penalty and executed in a manner we have come to expect from this prodigious talent over the last two seasons. It is as if time stands still for Palmer on a football pitch. He does not seem to feel pressure – and that is exactly what sets the best players aside from the rest. For Enzo Maresca and his Chelsea team, who appear now to be finally clicking, he is simply irreplaceable.

Since joining the Blues in September 2023, Palmer has 50 goal involvements (33 goals, 17 assists) in 48 Premier League games for Chelsea, but it is his capabilities from the spot which are most poignant. 

The former Manchester City man scored his 11th and 12th penalty on Sunday, setting a new Premier League record for the most spot-kicks taken and scored by any player in history. 

Yaya Toure was the previous holder of the record, scoring 11/11 for Manchester City, though he spent eight years building that legacy between the years of 2010 and 2018 (albeit not always as City’s designated taker). Palmer took his first penalty for Chelsea just last year.

Of the 244 players with a perfect penalty record in Premier League history, only 26 have successfully scored five or more without a miss. 

Besides Palmer and Touré, the players who have taken the most penalties without missing are Dimitar Berbatov, Rúben Neves, and Raúl Jiménez (each scoring 8). 

Palmer still has a way to go to match Matt Le Tissier’s almost-flawless record of 25 penalties scored from 26 attempts, although based on form, you certainly wouldn’t back against him matching – and surpassing – the Southampton legend’s tally before long…