Mauricio Pochettino, the manager of Chelsea, expressed his deep disappointment regarding the disagreement over the penalty taker during their 6-0 victory against Everton.
Nicolas Jackson and Noni Madueke were involved in a dispute, which ultimately led to Cole Palmer successfully converting the penalty for his fourth goal. Pochettino firmly stated that he cannot tolerate such behavior and made it clear to his players that he expects it to never happen again.
He emphasized that after such an outstanding performance, this kind of conduct is unacceptable. Pochettino believes that in order to become a great team, they must change their mindset and prioritize collective thinking.
It is worth noting that Palmer, who won the penalty for Chelsea, is their regular taker and has successfully converted nine spot-kicks this season.
Madueke initially refused to hand the ball to Palmer, but Captain Conor Gallagher intervened and passed it to the England international. Jackson then attempted to take the ball from Palmer, who had to push the striker away before putting the ball on the spot.
Pochettino later stated that all players are aware that Palmer is the designated penalty taker.
“The responsibility lies with Palmer. He must decide whether to pass the ball to a teammate. This issue needs to be resolved. They understand now,” the Argentine commented.
“It’s regrettable. It’s part of the learning process for a young team. I apologize to the fans.
“They must learn to be professional. Our focus should be on the team as a whole. This incident clearly shows that we still have much to learn.”
Palmer himself downplayed the incident afterwards.
“Other players wanted to take the penalty, but I am the designated taker and I wanted to take it,” the former Manchester City player explained.
“I believe it shows that everyone is willing to take responsibility. It may have been a bit exaggerated, but everyone is eager to win – we are all laughing and joking about it.”
This was Palmer’s second consecutive hat-trick at home, following his 100th-minute penalty in a 4-3 victory over Manchester United earlier this month.
“This shows their lack of experience. I may not be present at the training ground every day, but as far as I know, in their last important match, when the pressure was on in the final minute, I didn’t see them all fighting to take the penalty,” he remarked.
“It’s easy when it’s 4-0 and everyone wants to get on the scoresheet.”