Former Premier League midfielder Carlton Palmer says he knew Chelsea star Mason Mount could make the step up to the top flight after watching him at Derby County.
Mount spent the 2018/19 season on loan at Pride Park and impressed under Frank Lampard as he helped the Rams make it to the Championship play-off final.
The £67.5m-rated attacking midfielder finished the campaign with 11 goals in all competitions, with one of his strikes coming against Leeds United in the second leg of Derby’s play-off semi-final.
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Since then, Mount has gone on to become a key player for Chelsea, recently scoring a hat-trick for them against Norwich City, and a regular in the Premier League.
After watching him and former team-mate Tammy Abraham in the Championship, Palmer had no doubt both players could make the step up to English football’s top division.
“When I looked at Tammy Abraham when he went on loan to Aston Villa, watching him at Aston Villa, you could see that he could easily make that step up to the Premier League,” the ex-England international told TIF.
“The same with Mason Mount when he went to Derby. You could see that he could make that step up to the Premier League, head and shoulders above anybody in that league.”
And it is fair to say Mount has not looked back since, with the 22-year-old going on to win both the Champions League and UEFA Super Cup.