Ravel Morrison claims he was the one to tell Cole Palmer about his England call-up
Ravel Morrison has claimed he was the man who told Cole Palmer he'd received his first England call-up.
Palmer has impressed for Chelsea since completing a £40 million move from Manchester City over the summer.
He scored an injury-time equaliser against his former club in a thrilling 4-4 draw on Sunday evening, his fourth of the season.
It's caught the eye of England manager Gareth Southgate. He's selected Palmer and versatile City full-back Rico Lewis to replace the injured James Maddison and Lewis Dunk in his squad for this month's Euro 2024 qualifiers. Check out the duo arriving at St. George's Park for the first time.
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According to former Manchester United star Ravel Morrison, it wasn't Southgate who informed the 21-year-old of his call-up. It was him.
He posted a photo of Palmer to his Instagram story captioned: "Told him he's in the next England squad, he didn't think I was being serious! Congratulations bro, truly deserved!"
Palmer decided to leave City in the summer due to a lack of first-team action.
City boss Pep Guardiola told Palmer the departure of Riyad Mahrez would've opened up more opportunities on the right wing. However, Palmer decided to make the move to Stamford Bridge.
Guardiola admitted following Sunday's clash: "I said to him 'Riyad Mahrez is leaving, you are going to get a chance here'.
"He said 'No, I’m not going to play here, I want to leave' so I said 'OK, leave!'"
When asked about letting Palmer go to a potential rival, Guardiola replied: "We’d never stop a deal because of that.
"Why, if the transfer suits both clubs and the player? That means you are a small club.
"Big clubs make decisions for the benefit of all three parties. If a player wants to go to Chelsea or [Manchester] United or Liverpool, what is the problem if they are happy to be there and we are happy with the transfer? Another player comes here and we keep going with a good spirit."
Palmer will be hoping to make his England debut when the Three Lions welcome Malta to Wembley Stadium on Friday evening.
Topics: England, Chelsea, Cole Palmer, Premier League, Ravel Morrison
Daniel Marland