Mauricio Pochettino says Cole Palmer reminds him of an Argentinian World Cup winner… as the England star bags a brace in Chelsea’s 3-2 win over Luton

Mauricio Pochettino has suggested that Cole Palmer could be as good as Angel di Maria as he continues his fine form with the Blues.

The midfielder scored twice and picked up an assist in Chelsea’s 3-2 win over Luton on Saturday, keeping up his impressive record for his new side since joining from Manchester City in the summer.

Palmer, 21, has been one of Chelsea’s best players this season in a campaign that has been another disappointing one so far, but their star man’s showings have provided encouragement for the second half of the campaign.

His manager, Mauricio Pochettino, has been able to rely on Palmer with his side struggling in a number of other areas, and praised the England man in the build-up to the game at Kenilworth Road.

Speaking to TNT Sports, the Argentine compared Palmer to a player from his homeland that was in the 2022 World Cup winning side, and challenged him to reach the same heights as the player ‘with time’.

His manager Mauricio Pochettino (pictured) challenged the midfielder to reach their heights of the former Real Madrid star

Angel di Maria (right) is a similar player to Palmer – a left-footed, creative midfielder – and has enjoyed a successful career

‘In the position that he plays, and because he’s a left-footer and because he has some similarities and the quality, he’s a potential Angel Di Maria,’ Pochettino said. ‘Angel is a world champion, he was in Paris [Saint-Germain] with us, and is an amazing player.

‘He [Palmer] has the capacity and the potential to be close to him, with time. He’s still far away, but this type of player that can link, can be a playmaker, have the capacity to score, assist, it’s this type of player like Angel.

‘But of course he’s performing really well from day one, he’s adapted very well to the club, to the team-mates, to Chelsea life, and yes it’s amazing, because always you expect the player can perform well, but he’s doing excellent.’

Di Maria played a number of times for Pochettino while he was in charge of PSG and has also featured for the likes of Manchester United and Real Madrid.

The midfielder, now 35, has also won the World Cup Copa America and Champions League in his career.

Palmer scored twice for Chelsea against Luton on Saturday, also providing an assist in a 3-2 win for his side

Palmer responded to the comments in fine fashion with his strikes against the relegation-threatened side, and Pochettino sang his praises again after the showing.

‘He is such an important player for us. He is scoring goals like this and I am so pleased for him and the team.

‘We have a group of players that all need to feel confident and they need to feel that they can fight for their place. We have plenty of numbers and many players that can perform and play.’