Cole Palmer

Chelsea FC bought Cole Palmer from European champions Manchester City last summer to little fanfare. He wasn't one of the Blues' much-ballyhooed $100 million signings. He didn't come with a vibrant personality or a rabid fanbase, but the 21-year-old decided to take the world by storm anyway. It resulted in freezing-cold takes after a staggering 40-goal contribution in his debut season. Palmer built his own aura —ripe with nonchalance — by sending Stamford Bridge into raptures with a dramatic hat trick against Manchester United, casually popping in four goals against Everton and even briskly providing England's only strike in the final game of the 2024 Euros as a substitute. From the Man City bench to Ballon d'Or candidacy at Chelsea, Palmer has become the face of a big club in turmoil and desperate for a superstar. He's it. And at 22, he keeps giving the Shed reasons to cheer, as evident with a Premier League record four-goal first half against Brighton in September to jumpstart his second season.

Cole Palmer's “cold“ goal celebration has achieved iconic status in the last year, being seen on soccer pitches from London to Beijing. It even made an appearance at this summer's Paris Olympics, when Letsile Tebogo of Botswana hit the icy celebration after winning the gold medal in the men's 200m sprint.

The only thing tastier than the fruits of Cole Palmer's left foot? Chippy chips. Palmer went viral for a deadpan description of his favorite kind of french fries, leading his fans to go with chippy chips as pregame meals and Halloween costume accessories.