Twitter/X has become so wild now that I rarely browse it anymore. I go there to post articles and other stuff, obviously, because it keeps my profile up. But I rarely sit on there and browse it anymore, I just can’t do it to myself.
We all get emotional, we all get angry – I absolutely do. Sometimes we over react – again, I absolutely do. But overall, most fans I come across away from X have the ability to be able to look at things with a little more balance, even if we are disagreeing with each other.
On Twitter/X this week, I have heard about (not seen myself) some really stupid takes. People are apparently turning on Cole Palmer, Enzo Fernandez, and Moises Caicedo already.
What did I say a couple weeks back on Palmer on my personal Substack site Si Phillips Talks Chelsea? Everyone was hyping him up as the next biggest thing (which he might well be), but I knew as soon as he had a bad game (which he obviously would and will going forward because that’s completely normal), ‘fans’ would all of a sudden be saying he isn’t good enough.
I really cannot take the extremities on that platform. A couple of weeks ago we were winning the league, and this week we are getting relegated. That’s literally the extent of the flip flopping opinions I see and how drastically they change in the space of one week, sometimes even one day. It’s madness.
Palmer was the best attacker in the Premier League and going to win a World Cup for England a couple of weeks ago, and now he is Championship level.
Enzo was a world class midfielder last season, this season he is never going to be good enough for Chelsea.
Caicedo was the best midfielder in the Premier League last season, this season he is the reason we are losing matches.
Photo by Chelsea FC via Getty Images
Guess what? Good players can not be good all the time, especially playing in a team that has been so up and down.
And guess what else? Players coming into a new team under a new manager and in a new role and under the pressure of playing for a big club, may well take some time to settle in. Not always, but it can happen.
With Enzo it’s different. He was superb last season and was carrying a poor Chelsea team on his shoulders. I see him physically and mentally fatigued this season at times. But I don’t foresee his form staying where it is, he will absolutely elevate that again.
Caicedo I see as a 21-year-old young player who is just trying to find his place in this Chelsea team and also, gain his confidence and superiority. Once he has done that, which he will, then I have no doubt that he will be bossing the midfield physically and skillfully. And although he can play as a defensive midfielder, I think we will only see the very best of him when he is used as more of a box-to-box number 8, a lot like his idol N’Golo Kante. I also see him dominating games like Kante used to.
And with Palmer, this kid is class. He is technically sound and it all comes naturally. He will not be perfect every game, or even close to perfect every game, but he will prove to be a top player and a top acquisition for Chelsea. I have no doubts about that. He’s been superb since he arrived at Chelsea and literally smashed all expectations, but he cannot perform at 8/10 every single game, it’s impossible.
Some people on Twitter/X need to have a reality check and realise that whilst Chelsea as a club are still performing inconsistently, then so will some of the players.
And also, stop changing your opinions based on one frigging game god dammit!
I must say that I always call things as I see them and I am not as sold by some of our current players than I am with Caicedo, Enzo, and Palmer. But with these three, I have FULL belief that they will be huge for this club.
