The attacking midfielder netted the winning goal in our 1-0 victory over local rivals Fulham, confidently sweeping home a penalty to cap off a mightily impressive performance.

It comes off the back of questions being asked of his finishing following our defeat to Middlesbrough in the week, with former Man City man Palmer putting that to bed and reflecting on a ‘crucial’ three points in the Premier League.

‘This is a crucial win for us, especially given there aren’t too many games this month,’ said Palmer.

‘We need to get points on the board and climb up the table because, let’s be honest, the position we are in isn’t good enough with the talent we have in the squad.

‘We know we can be a lot higher but we are starting to perform well now and I think we can push on by having a strong second half of the season.

‘There’s plenty of points still to play for and we believe we can still have a successful season.

‘Fulham are a good team so we knew it wouldn’t be an easy game. When they got into high positions late on and started delivering balls into the box, we knew we had to be strong and that’s what we did and thankfully we got the three points. So, we’re delighted in the dressing room.

Palmer’s goal against our local rivals put right the wrongs of the midweek defeat to Middlesbrough in the first leg of our Carabao Cup semi-final, having missed a good opportunity at the Riverside.

He was quick to admit that he wasn’t at his best against Michael Carrick’s side and wanted to ensure he showed the Chelsea fans that he could get back to his best against Fulham. There’s no doubting with his performance at Stamford Bridge that he did just that and more.

‘In the week against Middlesbrough, I had one of those days [not scoring] but I knew with this game that I had to come into it with a strong mindset, be brave, be confident in front of the net and thankfully I did that with my goal to help us get a vital three points,’ said Cole.

‘I’m a confident player and I believe in myself. In the week, I had one of those games but I’ve put it behind me and thankfully I’ve managed to stick the penalty away and help the team.’