England Euros Squad Odds: Cole Palmer 2/5 to secure Three Lions place

Cole Palmer scored his 11th Premier League goal of the season in Chelsea's 3-2 win over Newcastle on Monday night and only looks to be getting better ahead of the summer.

So much so, he is now 2/5 to be part of England's squad for the tournament in Germany.

Chelsea have not had a tremendous strike rate with their big-money signings over the past couple of seasons but they will be having no second thoughts about their £42.5 million purchase of the 21-year-old from Manchester City on deadline day in September.

The attacking midfielder had already scored for City in the Community Shield and European Super Cup final when the Blues made their surprise move and he has become a key figure for his new team, turning out 35 times for club and country since moving to Stamford Bridge.

While Palmer has left the champions to join a club in a disappointing 11th place, his individual contributions have been excellent and he would be a popular pick for the finals among England fans.

Cole's goals crucial for his new club

Palmer first appeared for the Manchester City first team in the EFL Cup as a teenager in September 2020 and made the most of limited appearances the following season, scoring in four different cup competitions - the EFL Trophy, EFL Cup, Champions League and FA Cup.

He made 25 appearances for City in 2022/23, scoring only in a 6-0 FA Cup win against Burnley, but he has exploded into form in front of goal since moving to Chelsea.

Chelsea failed to find the net in Palmer's first four games with the club but he rose to prominence when scoring four penalties in the space of six games in the autumn, keeping his cool to convert in high-profile games against Arsenal, Tottenham and his former team Manchester City, when he netted the final goal in a wild 4-4 draw at Stamford Bridge.

A tally of 11 goals has Palmer in the top 10 Premier League scorers and he has also contributed eight assists, which puts him joint-sixth in that category.

Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino has been full of praise for his young star, saying: "He arrived on the last day of the transfer window and it was so easy for him to adapt to the team and the demands from us. 

"He is showing his quality and it is good to have him in the squad. He is getting more mature every day."

International game not too big for young star

Palmer is odds-on to make the England squad for the Euros even though he has just two caps so far, from substitute appearances in qualifiers against Malta and North Macedonia in November.

Forward-thinking players with flair is not an area England are short in and Bukayo Saka, Jude Bellingham and Phil Foden are ahead of the Chelsea starlet in the pecking order at present. 

Palmer is therefore competing with the likes of 2/5 James Maddison, 8/15 Jack Grealish and Chelsea team-mate Conor Gallagher, available at 4/6 for selection, and looks to have a great chance to make the squad, even though he says he would never have thought it was even possible at the start of this season.

"If you had told me at the start of the season that I had a chance to go to the Euros I wouldn't have believed it," said Palmer.

"I will just take it each game as it comes and see what happens in the summer."

The 20-year-old appears to be ahead of outside contenders Kobbie Mainoo, 4/1 James Ward-Prowse and 5/2 Anthony Gordon, and the Newcastle man has also just picked up an injury that could reduce his opportunities to impress England manager Gareth Southgate.

Palmer gained valuable experience of being part of a tournament squad when making five appearances for England at last year's European Under-21 Championships. He started in the 2-0 group win over Germany and scored in the 3-0 semi-final success against Israel before another start in the 1-0 final victory over Spain.

From everything we have seen so far this season, Palmer would have the maturity and talent to step up for England in the senior tournament if selected.

It certainly can't have harmed his case for a ticket on the plane that Southgate was at Stamford Bridge for Monday's impressive performance against Newcastle, when Palmer contributed to Nicolas Jackson's opening goal before delivering a tremendous 20-yard strike that put his side 2-1 ahead.