Hopefully I can turn into a starter for England... I'll play wherever

Despite his laid-back and laconic demeanour, Cole Palmer is hungry to make his mark on the national team

- David Hytner

Things that Cole Palmer is not bothered about, part 89: golf. Which is a pity as he is spending a warm-weather training week with England at the magnificent Camiral Golf & Wellness resort; the expected venue for the 2031 Ryder Cup.

Formula One. Palmer attended the Spanish Grand Prix on Sunday with Thomas Tuchel and the rest of the England squad, which he thought was good. "I went to the one in Abu Dhabi not long ago," he says, presumably meaning the race in Bahrain or Saudi Arabia. Who knows, who cares? "But I fell asleep at that one."

The searing heat in the US, which Palmer will experience with Chelsea in the coming weeks at the Club World Cup. And then again next summer if and when England qualify for the World Cup, which is also being hosted by Canada and Mexico. "It will play a part because I'm not used to it, but I don't think it will be a big problem," he says.

Oh, and southerners.

Manchester's finest made a comment last summer about how he was finding them hard work after his first season at Chelsea. Has he come to terms with them now? "No, they're all still moody," he says. "I think because it's so busy, they're all stressed. It must be a southern thing. I don't live in central London. Sometimes I go in but I couldn't live there."

If Palmer is a unique talent, he is unique to interview as well. Short shrift is his default setting; plenty of his answers are monosyllabic, some just a sound: hmmm. A shrug. It is impossible to ignore the quintessentially Manc vibe.

Palmer has a deadpan expression which wonders: "Why are you asking me that?" Example: how is he spending his downtime at the Camiral? "Play PlayStation... Fifa," he replies. Like, seriously? As on the pitch, Palmer is cool, cold. He is highly entertaining.