COLE PALMER (£5m) may well be Dream Team's most-valuable player this season.

The 21-year-old started 2023/24 at Manchester City, where it seemed he would have to be content with Carabao Cup starts and the occasional 15-minute cameo.

However, Chelsea opted to fork out £42.5million for the talented youngster on deadline day, a move that set him on the path to one of the most remarkable campaigns in recent memory.

Eyebrows were raised at the transfer fee at the time given Palmer had made just 18 Premier League appearances (predominantly as a substitute) prior to the switch.

The Blues have generally overspent on players in recent times but the acquisition of Palmer has to be considered smart business with the power of hindsight.

The England international was already Chelsea's runaway Player of the Year before Everton's visit to Stamford Bridge on Monday night but now there's a clamour for him to win one of prestigious, league-wide individual awards.

Palmer scored a perfect hat-trick (left foot, header, right foot) within half an hour against the Toffees but even that wasn't enough to satiate him.

Midway through the second half, he scored a penalty, his ninth of the season, after some undignified bickering on the part of Nicolas Jackson (£3.5m) and Noni Madueke (£2.9m).

When all was said and done, Palmer banked a whopping 30 points via four goals, five shots on target, 80 minutes played and three bonus points.

Incredibly, he's now level with Erling Haaland (£6.9m) on 20 league goals in the race for the Golden Boot.

There's no doubt that he's benefited from a steady stream of spot-kicks but his tally of 14 non-penalty goals in all competitions should not be taken for granted.

Palmer has registered 38 goal involvements (23 goals, 15 assists) from 39 appearances this season - a gargantuan effort given Mauricio Pochettino's side have lingered in mid-table for almost the entire campaign.

Monday night's haul has propelled Palmer up to joint-third in the overall Dream Team rankings, level with Bukayo Saka (£5.7m) on 315 points.

Only Manchester City duo Phil Foden (£5.9m) and the aforementioned Haaland have amassed more points at the time of writing.

DREAM TEAM'S TOP PERFORMERS THIS SEASON:

• Phil Foden - 330 pts
• Erling Haaland - 325 pts
• Cole Palmer - 315 pts
• Bukayo Saka - 315 pts
• Mohamed Salah - 286 pts
• Ollie Watkins - 280 pts
• Jarrod Bowen - 273 pts
• Darwin Nunez - 272 pts
• Bruno Fernandes - 268 pts
• Mohammed Kudus - 257 pts

To underline the extent of Palmer's brilliance, it's worth noting he's the only player in the top ten who hasn't had European football to bolster his schedule this term.

Chelsea's No20 averages 8.1 points-per-game, only Haaland and Michael Olise (£3.9m) boast better averages currently - the Norwegian poacher averages nine points-per-game while the Crystal Palace midfielder ticks along at a rate of 8.3.

Looking forward, Palmer faces a tricky double header in the form of Man City and Arsenal (both away from home) in Gameweek 32 but Dream Team bosses won't be perturbed by any fixtures on current form.

Truly a Dream Team campaign for the ages!