Palmer breaks free from ghost in machine to move off-grid

With 84 minutes gone at Stamford Bridge, Cole Palmer did something off-grid, unprescribed and, in context, quite surprising, skittering past Conor Bradley near the corner flag, veering inside with that surprising gangly turn of speed and shooting from a fine angle and, in a clever, you-blink-first way, going inside Alisson as he came for the cross, a super-smart little piece of invention.

- Barney Ronay

The ball curved away just enough to hit the post and bounce away from goal. Chelsea were 2-0 up at the time. Maybe he won't get told off too much.

Happily for Palmer, two minutes into stoppage time Chelsea were awarded a penalty. He buried it, did the chilly brrr-it's-cold stuff, and was mobbed pointedly by his teammates, including Robert Sanchez who ran the length of the pitch just to make it quite clear this was also about him.

It was Palmer's first goal since 14 January, his first in 19 games to go with two assists in that time. Chelsea have been on an upturn in results in the last few weeks. But this is clearly not the greatest use of Cole Palmer, and another note in the lingering bad taste around this place at times. (Chelsea, covering every variable, even have a fullback whose name translates as "Bad Taste").

In his TV interview after the game Palmer talked about the "idiots and trolls" of social media, which seemed a bit of a shame in victory. But then, Palmer's mood, the process of Palmer-maximisation, remains an unanswered theme of Enzo Maresca's management. How is this one going to play out?

This was an excellent afternoon for Chelsea. Victory makes it four in a row at just the right time. They still need to go to Newcastle and Nottingham Forest, but look in a good position not to be standing when the music stops.