Inside the rise of Cole Palmer: From pride in his Caribbean heritage and his love of music to mimicking Wayne Rooney in the garden, the Chelsea star has overcome adversity to become one of football's leading lights

If Cole Palmer isn't already a household name, the onus is on the household to get with the times. We're looking at a man who could play a defining role in the next decade of English football and beyond. 

Not many 21-year-olds brush aside Manchester United, but Palmer does what he likes. His hat-trick for Chelsea against the Red Devils on Thursday night once again saw him stray into the headlines. 

Who is this seemingly shy, matter-of-fact chap, and what are his origins? Players like this don't just spawn out of the ether. 

He has a fascinating story, from his family's extraordinary journey from the Caribbean to English shores, to being a boyhood Man United fan and then playing for Manchester City. 

In his garden as a child he would emulate Wayne Rooney and now kids are copying his own celebration. Let Mail Sport guide you through all you need to know about Cole Palmer.  

Origins 

Palmer was born in Wythenshawe, Manchester, in 2002 to Marie and Jermaine, with two older sisters. But that wasn't where his ancestors had been based. 

His paternal grandfather, Sterry Cole, revealed last year that that side of the family hailed from Saint Kitts and Nevis, a small Caribbean dual-island and, it must be said, a footballing minnow. 

Sterry told how his parents took the painful decision to leave him and his older brother St Clair behind as they tried to establish a better life for their family after travelling to the UK in 1955, having left behind a modest stone home in Basseterre. 

He said: 'My aunt Pearl, another auntie and uncle lived with us and there was my grandmother. I think the house only had three bedrooms but it was always full of people.

'My parents had already left for England, they went in 1955, five years before my brother and I, so we were brought up by my grandmother and aunties.'

Sterry grew up playing cricket and didn't know anything about football until he arrived in England in 1960, after a two-week voyage to Southampton, where his parents met him.

He said: 'Life was very different in Manchester, the people were different as was the weather and the food so it was a bit of a culture shock at first but when you're young you adapt quite well. We didn't stay too long in Moss Side before heading out to Rusholme.'

Palmer's great-grandfather worked in a garage while his great-grandmother took up a job as a sewing machinist, while Sterry went into construction. The idea someone could earn millions a year just two generations later was unthinkable. 

Childhood

As a child, Palmer wasn't running around in a Chelsea shirt or a City one - that would've been sacrilege. No, for him, the only shirt he wanted was wreathed with red. 

A photo from his childhood shows Palmer in one of United's old AON-sponsored jerseys. His idol at that age was Wayne Rooney. 

He said: 'What a player. When I was growing up I used to watch all the football and the one that sticks in my mind is Rooney.

'Ever since I was a little kid he has been my footballing hero.'

Something had to give when Palmer was scouted by Manchester City at the age of eight. Now he was behind enemy lines - but he still found a way to sneak in a tribute to his beloved club.

As grandfather Sterry said: 'When he first joined City, he used to wear a United shirt or some sort of United garment under his sky-blue shirt.

'He was a United fan but City offered the better set-up, they had the better training facilities and were able to better nurture his talent.

'The fact that he did support United never held him back, though. When City played against them at junior level, he used to absolutely smash them.

'Ever since he was knee-high, he's been mad keen on football and he'd run rings around the other kids. We knew he was special even back then.

'But he's worked hard, trained hard and just kept at it. But what you've seen from him now, just watch...there's more to come!'

Touching family videos show Palmer as a toddler bouncing and picking a ball round Wythenshawe's Hollyhedge Park as well as a couple of blistering goals taken during his schooldays.

In an interview in 2022 Palmer told how his first memories were about football.

He said of his daily trips to the park with his father: 'We would do that every single day whatever the weather - and my dad's family is from St Kitts and Nevis in the Caribbean. He hates going out in the cold. But he'd do it for me anyway.'

He also remembered his dad taking him to watch him play for his Sunday League team.

He said: 'He used to sit me down on the bag of balls on the sidelines, wrapped in one of his rain jackets. I would just take it all in - the crunching tackles, the shouting, the arguing.

'Dad doesn't play anymore since he done his knee, and I don't really remember any specific games, but he'll tell you how good he was!

'He fixes dental equipment as his real job, but to listen to him you'd think he'd had a 20-year career in the Premier League!'

Bursting onto the scene 

Palmer made his debut for City in September 2020, coming off the bench against Burnley in the EFL Cup. 

However, his first couple of seasons in Pep Guardiola's set-up were quiet - the youngster only made 13 appearances in all competitions and had to wait a year until his first goal after his debut. Only a handful of opportunities in the Premier League came. 

In the 2022/23 season, Palmer became a regular off the bench, stepping on the turf 25 times. He would often feature on the left wing and played in some critical games in all competitions, taking on Liverpool, Chelsea, Sevilla, and others. 

In the summer, his star really rose when he scored in the UEFA Super Cup final against Sevilla and the Community Shield against Arsenal, but there was simply too much competition at the Etihad.

Chelsea snapped him up for £40m, and he may well have been the signing of the season, having registered 21 goals and 12 assists so far in the royal blue of west London. 

Manager Mauricio Pochettino recalls when he first met him. 'I remember we first met in my office with Palmer... there was a connection, he trusted me. He deserves massive credit.

'His mentality is amazing. He is a top player but there is still space to improve thanks to an incredible mentality.'

That talent and mentality had led him into Gareth Southgate's England team. Having already won the Under-21s Euros in the summer - on penalties, encouragingly - he received his first senior call-up in November. 

Appearances against Malta and North Macedonia likely won't be the highlight of what should become an illustrious international career, but his debut was well-earned. 

While he is not an automatic take for Southgate's Euro 2024 squad due to the extreme level of competition, there have been many calls for him to be on the plane to Germany. 

‘If you had told me at the start of the season I had a chance to go to the Euros I wouldn't have believed it,’ Palmer said. ‘I will take each game as it comes and see what happens in the summer.' 

Earlier in the season, Mail Sport's Football Editor Ian Ladyman argued that Palmer must go to the Euros on It's All Kicking Off. 

He said: 'Cole Palmer to me looks like he should be in that England team in the summer. I don't know how he gets in and who comes out to get him in but he just looks like one of those players that has to play. You have to find a home for him somewhere.' 

He scored so regularly now that he has been able to develop a trademark celebration. 

When Palmer finds the net, he places a hand on the opposite arm as if he is shivering, and thus he has been dubbed 'Cold Palmer', which also links to his coolness in front of goal. 

His friend Morgan Rogers once did the celebration for Middlesbrough, so he picked it up and it has stuck ever since.  

Off the pitch

Palmer doesn't have the flashiest social media presence outside football, and if he's in a relationship, he hasn't thrust that into the limelight like some England stars do. 

Instagram photos and videos from January show him unwinding in Dubai by visiting a zoo.

He kept a safe distance from a white lion, but he had a snake wrapped over his neck and an excitable monkey hanging from his neck. 

According to The Sun, Palmer owns a £190,000 Lamborghini Urus, a £71,000 BMW i4, Mercedes A-Class worth £30,000 and a far more modest VW Polo. 

Palmer has also modelled for boohooMAN, donning a black buttoned polo shirt, and a grey zipped jacket, and a jet-black leather jacket among other apparel. 

He has enormous pride in his Caribbean heritage, which became clear when he was featured showing off his rapping skills in a TikTok video which went viral turning him into a social media sensation.

The video has now become a trademark symbol of celebration posted by excited fans every time Palmer scores or puts in a good performance.

In the video Palmer is shown performing a series of moves as he sings along to a track by little-known Jamaican rapper Vybz Kartel who was jailed for life in 2014 for his role in the murder of an associate in a row over guns.

The song called Clarks, which is sung in Jamaican patois, is an homage to the sensible shoe brand and the rapper was credited with helping to boost sales in his home country after its release in 2010.

The video also features one of Palmer's colourful football boots which are emblazoned with the English flag of St George alongside the flag of St Kitts.

It was posted with the encouragement of his sister Hallie who while studying for a fashion degree set up her own brand creating oversized hair ribbons and scrunchies for women.

Asked about the video after his call-up for England's Euro 2024 qualifying match against Malta last year, Palmer said: 'Me and my sister were in the house one day and there was a TikTok trend going around. People were singing songs and stuff and my sister said 'Come and sing this song so I was like 'Umm… alright will do it'.

Family is clearly a big thing for Palmer. Last year, he told how he owes his success to father Jermaine.

He said: 'Without my dad I probably wouldn't be a footballer.

'He did numerous hours with me every night, working with me to try and make me a professional footballer. And yeah I am trying to repay him as much as I can.'

Until 2022 year the family lived in a modest semi-detached home in Cheadle, Cheshire which they sold for £350,000 until October that year. 

Father Jermaine, who fixes dental equipment for a living, was a self-proclaimed pub football legend, who spotted the talent in his young son when he was aged around four and quickly instilled in him a love of the game.

How that has paid off.