Cole Palmer Makes Premier League History with Four-Goal First Half
In a thrilling match on Saturday, Cole Palmer etched his name into Premier League history. The young Chelsea forward became the first player ever to score four goals in the first half of a Premier League game. His incredible feat helped Chelsea secure a 4-2 victory over Brighton at Stamford Bridge.
Palmer netted all of Chelsea’s goals in a game that featured six first-half goals and none after the break, with Georginio Rutter and Carlos Baleba on target for the visitors.
No player had previously scored four times in the first half of a Premier League game, while Palmer’s first three goals came in the space of just nine minutes and 46 seconds.
Only five other players have previously scored a quicker hat-trick in the competition, with Sadio Mane’s remarkable hat-trick in two minutes and 56 seconds for Southampton against Aston Villa in 2015 the fastest.
Gabriel Jesus previously held the record for the fastest time to score four times in a Premier League game, coming in the 53rd minute as Manchester City beat Watford 5–1 in April 2022.
19 minutes and 57 seconds elapsed between Palmer’s first and fourth goals, with Jermaine Defoe holding the record for the fastest four-goal run in Premier League history when he needed 17 minutes and 56 seconds for Tottenham’s game against Wigan Athletic in 2009.
Things could have been even better for Palmer, who also hit the post with a sloppy effort to see a close-range finish ruled out for offside as Chelsea trailed 1-0 in the first half.
Palmer has now scored three Premier League hat-tricks for Chelsea, the most of any Blues player in the history of the competition, joining Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, Didier Drogba and Frank Lampard.
