Cesc Fabregas’ assessment on Cole Palmer’s 0 minutes for England makes absolutely sense.

Former Chelsea and Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas had his thoughts on Gareth Southgate leaving Cole Palmer out of the mix against Serbia entirely in England’s Euro 2024 opener, and many would agree.

Cesc Fabregas is upset at Cole Palmer’s absence from England’s 1-0 Euro 2024 victory over Serbia.

The Chelsea playmaker was an unused substitute in Gelsenkirchen as Gareth Southgate’s team battled through a difficult tournament opener in Group C. The Three Lions sit top of the pool after their first match, but they struggled to maintain control following Jude Bellingham’s early opener.

Fabregas, 37, was a guest on the BBC’s coverage of the match and criticized Southgate’s tactics. Specifically, the Spaniard focused on the midfield and was surprised to see Palmer, who was awarded Premier League Young Player of the Season last season, fail to even make it off the bench.

“If you send the message in putting in a defensive midfielder or an extra defender to cover the result, you will as a player feel it,” the guest analyst stated. “Mentally, you begin to pull back, dropping more. Instead, if you send an offensive player, say Palmer, up the pitch and control the ball in the final third, I believe the guys will be lot more comfortable.”

Southgate only used three of his five authorized substitutions on Sunday, with Conor Gallagher replacing Trent Alexander-Arnold in the 69th minute. Jarrod Bowen and Kobbie Mainoo then took over for Bukayo Saka and Bellingham, respectively.

Fabregas regarded such alterations as overly defensive, and it showed in the game’s momentum. England had five shots on goal against Serbia, but just one of them came in the last 20 minutes, whilst four of the opposition’s six attempts came in that time frame.
Fabregas also chastised Manchester City’s Phil Foden for not doing enough on the night, saying, “Do you want it enough to make a difference and hold the ball for your team? Do you want to make something happen? Do you enjoy putting the ball under pressure?
He then compared the Premier League Player of the Season to former Barcelona teammates, encouraging Foden to perform more for his country. “You’ll never see Xavi, [Andres] Iniesta, the top, top players in the last 15, 20, years, do that,” Fabregas said. “You have to accept this responsibility in order to progress.