Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino says he will not condone the “unthinkable behavior” shown by his players during their side's 6-0 win over Everton at Stamford Bridge.
Cole Palmer His four goals helped Chelsea beat a hapless Everton side, making him the Premier League's all-time leading scorer this season.
penalty discussion
The former Manchester City player has scored 20 goals this season and almost single-handedly destroyed Sean Dyche's side, scoring a hat-trick in the first 29 minutes and injecting real momentum into his side's bid for European qualification.
Nicholas Jackson also scored a great goal and Alfie Gilchrist capped off a near-perfect night for Pochettino and Chelsea.
Read more: Cole Palmer caps off perfect weekend of Premier League football for bitter Chelsea fans
But it was up to Palmer's fourth goal – a penalty to Jordan Pickford's left – that sparked the controversy that soured the night.
With Palmer, who was the designated penalty taker, on the floor having been fouled on a penalty, Noni Madueke and Jackson attempted to take the ball from each other to take the spot kick.
There was some pushing and shoving before Thiago Silva and Conor Gallagher had to intervene to break up the pair.
“That's too bad…”
Speaking after the game, Pochettino said he had “made it clear” that Palmer would be in charge of penalties and insisted the actions of Madueke and Jackson were unacceptable.
“It's a shame. We can't behave like this. I told them this is the last time we'll see this kind of behavior,” he told Sky Sports.
“After a performance like this, it is impossible to act like this.
“I've made it clear to them, and I've made it clear to the fans, that Cole Palmer is the heir. If he wants to give it one more time…but not this way.
“This is a really sad situation and we don't want to accept that it will happen again.”
Palmer was also asked about the incident and admitted that the altercation between the players may have gone “too far.”
“The other guys wanted to take it, which makes sense because we're 4-0, but I was the penalty taker and I took the penalty,” Palmer added.
“This shows that everyone wants to take responsibility. Maybe the argument went too far.”