'I thought': Gary Lineker delivers verdict on how Cole Palmer played in central midfield for England
Yesterday at 12:45 PM
England lost to Greece on Thursday evening in what was a drab performance from the Three Lions.
Not only did England lose, they were thoroughly outplayed, and on another evening, if it weren't for disallowed goals or goalline clearances, Lee Carsley's side could've been knocked for five or six.
As you can imagine, there's been a serious inquest into this game in the media, and speaking on The Rest is Football, Gary Lineker has shared his verdict on this match.
Lineker was critical of a number of players on the night, but perhaps Chelsea'sCole Palmer was the player Lineker was most frustrated by.
Gary Lineker shares Cole Palmer verdict vs Greece
Palmer played in a new central midfield role for England against Greece as Carsley experimented with his team.
Unfortunately, the Chelsea star was largely ineffective in this position.
Lineker spoke about Palmer and a number of his teammates, expressing his disappointment in this performance.
"I just thought a lot of the players were slightly off their game tonight. I thought Gordon struggled, I thought Saka was well below par, injured, hopefully nothing too serious. I thought that also Cole Palmer was nothing like as good as he has been," Lineker said.
Phil Foden was relatively quiet. I thought Bellingham was our best player. I thought he was putting himself about, he got in good positions, he created that chance for Cole Palmer, he scored a really good goal, he was by far our best player."
Cole Palmer's stats against Greece
Lineker says Palmer didn't look his best against Greece, and he's not wrong.
Palmer was way off his usual best, and the stats back up that argument.
The Chelsea star didn't manage a single shot on target against Greece, he completed just one dribble, and he made just two key passes, which is down on his season average of 3.3 per game for Chelsea.
Palmer did make two tackles and interceptions, showing a different side to his game, but, all in all, this was a tough evening for the 22-year-old.
Palmer was recently compared to Robin van Persie, and as the second-highest goalscorer in the Premier League this season, it would surely make more sense for Carsley to play the youngster in a more advanced position.
It would be a surprise if Palmer were to continue playing in a deeper midfield role for England, that's for sure.
