Cole Palmer points finger of blame in spiky interview after Chelsea loss to Bayern Munich

Cole Palmer accused Chelsea of failing to handle the big moments, as their big Champions League return fell flat in Bavaria. The Blues, returning to the competition for the first time since 2023, were soundly beaten 3-1 by Bayer Munich.

Enzo Maresca's squad suffered disappointment at the Allianz Arena, as Trevoh Chalobah's unfortunate own goal and Harry Kane's double sealed a well-deserved triumph for the German giants.

Chelsea's star man Palmer netted his team's solitary strike in the opening period, capping off a slick move by exchanging passes with Malo Gusto before slotting past Manuel Neuer. Yet Palmer's effort - his second in four days following his goal in Saturday's 2-2 stalemate with Brentford - proved insufficient to alter the final outcome.

Following the match, Palmer pinpointed exactly where things unravelled for the Blues in a candid post-match discussion. The England ace emphasised his team's concentration lapses and their failure to handle crucial passages of play effectively.

Speaking to TNT Sports, Palmer said: "Yeah [frustrating]. We deserved more. We started well, had early chances but when you make mistakes at the highest level it's difficult.

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"There was a lack of concentration, not managing the moments correct.

"We showed we can play against one of the best teams in the competition. We deserved more to be honest. The manager said to us before we can go toe-to-toe.

"It's a good learning curve and to be back in the competition is nice. I don't even know [what happened in the second half]. We're not coming here to be a learning curve. We showed we want to compete."

Palmer was on top form for the Blues, thinking he'd netted a second late in the game, nudging the ball past Neuer after a cracking pass from Andrey Santos, but VAR chalked it off for an offside earlier in the play.

He was a shining light in a varied performance from the Blues, who played some complex passing football and looked menacing at times, but didn't give Neuer too much to worry about.

Giving his verdict on Chelsea's overall performance, Maresca said after the match: "I think overall the performance was quite good. We started very well for 20 minutes, creating chances.

"When we conceded the goal, we can avoid that kind of goal. We were in the game and scored."

Chelsea are next up against Manchester United in the Premier League on Saturday. The Blues then head to Lincoln City in the Carabao Cup before returning home to face Brighton.

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