Fans believe they have deciphered what Pep Guardiola told Cole Palmer after Manchester City beat Chelsea 2-0 in their own back yard.

The pair were seen deep in conversation at full time, with Guardiola even putting an arm around his former wonderkid. 

Palmer joined Chelsea last summer for £42.5million and after an impressive year has signed a two-year extension to tie himself down until 2033 at Stamford Bridge.

It was a huge coup for Chelsea, who now have one of England's brightest hopes on their hands, and some fans think Guardiola rues letting him go while others take a different angle. 

'He’s apologizing for letting him leave but wants he [sic] back,' said one fan on X, formerly Twitter. 

Some fans think Pep Guardiola and Cole Palmer were discussing a possible move back north

'"You should have stayed at City! Your talent doesn't deserve to be wasted at Chelsea,"' one guessed. 

Another imagined Palmer saying: '''You’ve got the Alvarez money, can I come back please?”' after Julian Alvarez's £81m switch to Atletico Madrid.   

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'He told him he’s washing his career,' one reckoned. 

'Just nine years more,' another said. 

'Pep Guardiola was happy that Cole Palmer wasn't fully fit at his best today,' one commented. 

Palmer has drawn two and lost two of his games against City since leaving for London.  

City continued a relentless run which has seen them win 20 of their last 24 Premier League games, carrying on the blistering form that won them a fourth consecutive title in 2023-24. 

For Chelsea it was a disappointing start under Enzo Maresca, though not an unexpected defeat, as they waved goodbye to a five-game winning streak from last season. 

Erling Haaland opened the scoring after 18 minutes with a dink over Robert Sanchez to bag his 91st City goal in his 100th appearance for them. 

It also marked his 64th Premier League goal on his 67th appearance in the competition - the player who comes closest to that is Mo Salah, who had 38 in his first 71. 

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Mateo Kovacic a sealed the deal late on with a brilliant strike after dribbling past Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez but refused to celebrate against his former club. 

There were bright spells for Chelsea and at one moment Nicolas Jackson thought he had equalised but his goal was ruled out for offside, sparing the blushes of Ederson whose fumbling had gifted him the ball.

The match was also notable for the omission of Raheem Sterling, who Mail Sport exclusively revealed was 'seeking clarity' over his situation at the club. 

A statement from Sterling’s camp read: ‘Raheem Sterling is contracted to Chelsea Football Club for the next three years.

‘He returned to England two weeks early to conduct individual training, and has had a positive pre-season under the new coach, who he has developed a good working relationship with.

‘He is committed, as ever, to delivering at the highest level for Chelsea FC and the fans, who he holds in high regard, and given his inclusion in official club pre-match material this week, our expectation was that Raheem would be involved in this weekend’s fixture in some capacity.

‘As a camp, we have always had positive dialogue with, and assurance from, Chelsea FC in relation to Raheem’s future at the club, so we look forward to gaining clarity on the situation.

‘Until then, we will continue to support Raheem’s desire to start the new season positively.’