Palmer was simply sensational, netting a hat-trick inside 29 minutes and adding his 20th Premier League goal of the season in the second half to move him level with Erling Haaland in the race for the Golden Boot.
It is all the more remarkable considering before Palmer moved from Manchester City to Chelsea this summer the 21-year-old had never scored a league goal.
Fast forward seven months and the England star could be on course to finish as the division’s top scorer.
From super sub to main man
Back in November Palmer told BBC Sport he moved from his boyhood club to west London in search of “regular game time”.
He made 25 appearances for Manchester City last season, of which just seven were starts. In contrast this campaign he has already managed 25 goals, coming from an impressive 43 matches.
The £42m switch has seemingly paid off for both Palmer and his employers. He is a lynchpin for Mauricio Pochettino’s side and has scored the most league goals in a season for the Blues since Diego Costa also hit 20 in 2016-17.
Chelsea still have seven league matches remaining.
“You expect him to perform well but he’s performing fantastic and doing amazing for the team,” Chelsea boss Pochettino told BBC Match of the Day. “I’m happy for him scoring four goals.”
