Garth Crooks is spot on - Chelsea 'revelation' simply has to be in Gareth Southgate's England plans

Where would Chelsea be without Cole Palmer? The wiry attacker made it 11 Premier League goals for the season on Monday evening as the Blues fought off a spirited Newcastle United in a 3-2 win at Stamford Bridge, and once again he outlined his credentials as one of the most electrifying young talents in the country.

Meeker personalities would not have had the gumption to walk away from the warm, fuzzy glory of his boyhood club, Manchester City, last summer. It would have been quite easy, and expected, for Palmer to opt for a life of infrequent minutes and plentiful silverware. But instead, the 21-year-old backed himself, took a plunge, and has reaped the benefits.

Chelsea writ large may be a temperamental basket case of a proposition, but Palmer himself is thriving. No player of his age or younger has been directly involved in more goals across Europe's top five leagues this season, and in that regard, only Real Madrid wunderkind Jude Bellingham has matched his combined goal and assist tally of 19.

All of which begs the question; if Bellingham is considered an immediate shoe-in for Gareth Southgate's looming Euro 2024 plans, why is Palmer not? Of course, the Chelsea starlet has been capped twice for England already, but there is still an air of uncertainty over his selection. And pundit Garth Crooks does not believe that should be the case.

Speaking to BBC Sport for his regular Team of the Week column, Crooks said: 'This kid [Palmer] has been a revelation since his arrival at Stamford Bridge. It was clear that Manchester City weren't prepared to give him the game time he thought he needed and how could they with Kevin de Bruyne, Silva, Rodri and Foden occupying the space with Jack Grealish getting the occasional game. The smart move was to leave and get the playing time his talent deserved elsewhere.

'Well he did just that and in his first season in top-flight football has scored 11 Premier League goals. It was Palmer's strike that was cleverly diverted in to the Newcastle goal by Nicolas Jackson but there was no mistake with his superb finish that put Chelsea 2-1 up against the visitors.

'Palmer is an exceptional talent and it will be interesting to see if Gareth Southgate - who was watching the youngster perform against the Magpies - selects him in the England squad for the forthcoming internationals. I think he's earned it.'

And earned it he most certainly has. Palmer consistently proves himself to be a rare creative spark in an otherwise frustrating Chelsea team, and his ability to produce moments of brilliance from seeming nothingness is exactly the kind of knack that an England side increasingly accused of excessive conservatism could benefit from. The City academy graduate is one of a number of exciting young talents knocking on the door of Southgate's plans at the present moment in time, and the hope from many is that the national boss will be both brave and forward-thinking enough to embrace a slight changing of the guard in the coming weeks and months.

If he does, Palmer should absolutely be among those who are given a chance to prove themselves. The more you see the lad play, the more it becomes undeniable; he simply has to be a regular senior England international.