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• Zola surprised by Palmer's Chelsea impact

  Gianfranco Zola believes Cole Palmer is a "top player", though he has been surprised by the impact the England international has had since joining Chelsea.

  Palmer signed for the Blues at the start of last season and is a hugely influential figure at Stamford Bridge.

  He was named the Premier League's Young Player of the Year, and since his debut in September 2023, Palmer has been involved in 44 top-flight goals (28 goals, 16 assists). No other player in the competition has directly contributed to as many goals in that time.

  Already this season, he has netted six goals and registered five assists in the league, the most of any Chelsea player, and made history against Brighton, becoming the first player to score four times in the first half of a Premier League match.

  And Chelsea great Zola has high hopes for the 22-year-old.

  "At the moment he is producing performances and results worthy of a top player, so where he can get, I don't know, because this guy has surprised everyone, especially me," Zola told Stats Perform at Festival dello Sport in Trento, Italy.

  "I knew he had good qualities, but doing what he is doing is a surprise for me. And so, I would really like him to continue to surprise both me and the others, so let's hope he continues like this."

  Chelsea sit fourth in the Premier League and are unbeaten in the competition since their opening-day loss to Palmer's former club Manchester City.

  Enzo Maresca is now looking to become only the fifth boss to win each of his first four Premier League away games, with one of the previous four to do so being his next opponent, Liverpool's Arne Slot.

  Despite questions surrounding the club before the start of the season, Maresca has seemingly imposed his style of play on the squad quickly, and Zola is impressed with how they have adapted to life under the new head coach.

  "I am very happy because beyond the results, which are positive, the team is showing signs of being on the right path," he added.

  "There is a structure that is working and then, as they say in England, a 'top of that', that is Palmer, who is continuing to do extraordinary things as he did last year."

  Chelsea face league leaders Liverpool on Sunday and will be looking to stay in the mix at the top of the table by claiming their first win in seven against the Reds.

  Maresca has shrugged off early suggestions that Chelsea could challenge for the title this season, and though Zola thinks the Blues are competing well, he expects it to be tight in the Premier League.

  "Undoubtedly the competition is very strong, very high," he said.

  "Liverpool, Arsenal, who have been doing important things for a few years now, City, who will return to their levels, are already at their levels, have had the misfortune of losing a very important player like Rodri, who can be a factor, but [Pep] Guardiola has always shown that he can find solutions, so they will also be there.

  "The Premier League is competitive, and Chelsea will have a lot of competitiveness against these teams. However, I repeat, it is encouraging because they are growing well."

• Former Liverpool defender Matip confirms retirement after Anfield exit

  Former Liverpool defender Joel Matip has confirmed his retirement from professional football. 

  Matip, who joined Liverpool on a free transfer in 2016, has been without a club since leaving Anfield at the end of last season and has since decided to call time on his 15-year career. 

  The 33-year-old started out at Schalke, making 258 appearances for the Bundesliga outfit and helping them lift the DFB-Pokal and German Super Cup in 2011. 

  Matip was among the first signings made by Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool, joining in the same window as Sadio Mane, Georginio Wijnaldum and Loris Karius. 

  He helped the Reds return to the Champions League in Klopp's first full campaign in charge, making 29 Premier League appearances and keeping nine clean sheets. 

  However, his spell with the Reds was marred by repetitive injuries, sustaining 16 different issues across his eight-year spell on Merseyside. 

  The former Cameroon international's final appearance for Liverpool came in a 4-3 win over Fulham in December 2023 after suffering an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury in the same game. 

  Matip made 201 appearances for Liverpool in all competitions, scoring 11 goals and winning six major honours, which included the Reds' sixth Champions League triumph. 

• Fernandes relishing Portugal challenge with Man Utd 'not in a positive moment'

  Bruno Fernandes believes Manchester United's recent woes have left them "not in a positive moment", but he is hoping to take centre-stage for Portugal in the Nations League. 

  Fernandes has gone 12 games without finding the back of the net for United, his longest goal drought since he arrived at Old Trafford back in January 2020.

  The Red Devils have failed to win their last five games across all competitions, with their last outing ending in a goalless draw against Aston Villa before the international break. 

  Erik ten Hag's side have managed eight points from their opening seven Premier League games, their fewest at this stage of a league campaign since 1989-90 (seven).

  They have also failed to score in each of their last three Premier League games, equalling their worst run without a goal in the competition under Ten Hag's stewardship. 

  Fernandes is now preparing for Portugal's Nations League clash with Poland on Saturday, with the midfielder hoping to continue the Selecao's perfect start in Group A1. 

  "I will talk about myself personally. It changes a lot because the space is different. This is not a positive moment at Manchester, we are not winning games," Fernandes said.

  "The space for the national team is completely different. It's a space where, in the last few days, I have felt very comfortable.

  "I have felt that I can enjoy my football, and I think that in all the games we play we are going to win, and we have all benefited from what we've come to do, and I'm in my country, I speak my language, I have better food. All of this is connected with psychology.

  "But the important thing is to know how to differentiate the moments, the places, but above all to make sure that what has been negative, try to pass that on to the positive, regardless of the club or the national team.

  "I try to give my best in all the games I play, regardless of the club or the national team I'm representing. My will and my effort will never change what I want to bring to the game."

  Fernandes was part of the Portugal side that won the Nations League in 2019, playing 81 minutes in their 1-0 win over the Netherlands in the final. 

  Many of the players that started the final in Porto remain in the current squad, though head coach Roberto Martinez has shifted to a more youthful approach since.

  While Portugal suffered a quarter-final exit to France at Euro 2024, Fernandes is confident the current crop of talent can replicate their Nations League success from five years ago.

  "The first difference is that we haven't reached the final four yet. I think all the teams were strong, regardless of the names that came through here and whether they won or stopped winning. I think Portugal has always had a strong team," Fernandes said.

  "If we look at the history of our country and football in our country, we had great names and players who always represented the team at the highest level and at the level that is required.

  "There are times when you go further and others when you fall by the wayside, others when you win, as happened in 2016 and 2019.

  "This team is hungry to repeat this achievement in 2019 because no Portuguese team enters any competition to not win.

  "Everyone knows that our ambition is to always win and to win every game, so our ambition now is to win against Poland because we are a team that respects very much what we are going to find as opponents, because we know that our final objective will only come if we manage to win every game."