“This is my favorite goal” - Chelsea star Cole Palmer reflects on his winning strike against Manchester United and the Red Devils' 'surprising' tactic

Chelsea star Cole Palmer has revealed that his winning strike against Manchester United last season is his favorite goal. The Blues locked horns with the Red Devils at Stamford Bridge in April, having lost 2-1 in their first encounter at Old Trafford. Mauricio Pochettino's side had a strong start as Conor Gallagher and Cole Palmer scored within 20 minutes of the start.

Manchester United levelled the scoreline before the break thanks to goals from Bruno Fernandes and Alejandro Garnacho. The Argentine then completed his brace in the second half and United led 3-2.

While all hope seemed lost for the west Londoners, they were awarded a penalty late into stoppage time, and Palmer slotted it into the back of the net.

Shortly after the equalizer, Chelsea were awarded a corner, taken quickly by Enzo Fernandez, who found Palmer in acres of space. The England international scored the match-winner with a hard strike, completing an emphatic victory for the Blues.

Speaking about the goal in an interview on the Premier League's official YouTube channel, Palmer said (via The Mirror):

"This is my favourite goal. I just couldn't believe how much time and space I had. When I got the ball, I took a touch and then I took another one and I thought 'where is everyone?'

"Then there was just loads of players there so I thought 'if I shoot on target, hard, I've got a chance'. When I got it, they were all pointing saying 'mark him', and none of them came out."

Palmer was a marquee player for Chelsea under Pochettino last season, playing a crucial role in securing a sixth-place finish. The English attacker scored 27 goals and provided 15 assists across competitions last term.

"I thought they were going to take me out" - Chelsea star Cole Palmer opens up about emphatic celebrations after 4-3 Manchester United win

Cole Palmer has opened up about the wild emotions he felt after scoring the match-winner in Chelsea's 4-3 victory over Manchester United last season.

During the aforementioned interview, Palmer was asked whether he was surprised by the amount of space Manchester United gave him so close to the final whistle. He said:

"Yeah, I was thinking, 'what?' I don't even know why I was there, I just went there."

Speaking about the celebrations, the former Manchester City forward added:

"You don't even know what to do. Just running and then I saw all of the bench coming and I thought they were going to take me out! I went to run to the manager first but then I saw Axel and Benoit and I thought, na, U-turn. So I ran the other way. Just emotion wasn't it? We were losing it was the 96th minute and they were just passing it around us and then we scored two."

Chelsea will next face Brighton & Hove Albion at Stamford Bridge on Saturday (28 September) while Manchester United take on Tottenham Hotspur at Old Trafford on Sunday.