Palmer breaks Chelsea's all-time hat trick record

Cole Palmer moved clear of some Chelsea legends on Saturday as he scored his fourth hat trick for the team, setting a new club record.

A first-half treble against Wolves was Palmer's fourth for the club in the Premier League in just three years and saw him better the tallies of Jimmy Floyd-Hasselbaink, Didier Drogba and Frank Lampard who all managed three during their long careers in west London.

Palmer scored twice from the spot against the league's bottom side before a well-taken finish inside the box in the 38th-minute secured the hat trick and the record for the former Manchester City forward.

It proved to be an afternoon to remember in more ways than one for Palmer whose hat trick ranked as Chelsea's third fastest in Premier League history (38 minutes). He also holds the record for the fastest (29 minutes vs. Everton) and second fastest (31 minutes vs. Brighton).

It also saw Palmer become the first player in Premier League history to register three first-half hat tricks.

And it didn't stop there as Palmer overtook John Terry (41) into second for most goals scored by English players for Chelsea in the Premier League (44), leaving him chasing Lampard, who managed a whopping 147.

Palmer joined Chelsea from Man City in 2023, registering 44 goals in 84 appearances since becoming the star man at Stamford Bridge.

There have been reports out of west London in recent weeks that Palmer is eyeing a return to Manchester after feeling homesick in the capital, but boss Liam Rosenior has since made light of those.

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"It's so unrealistic It's come from nowhere. There's nothing in it. There's no reason to have the conversation. That's where I'm at," Rosenior said.

"Cole is very happy. I've had numerous conversations with him. Our thoughts are on how we can make this team better, how he can improve and how I can help him.

"He loves being here and he wants to be a Chelsea player. You can't stop speculation, but some speculation is so far from the truth. There's no point in having a discussion about it."

Information from ESPN's Global Research contributed to this report.