Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur: How Cole Palmer and Mohammed Kudus compare before Premier League clash

Chelsea will welcome Tottenham Hotspur to Stamford Bridge for a Premier League matchday eight West vs North London derby on Saturday, with both sides looking to draw inspiration from attacking midfielders Cole Palmer and Mohammad Kudus, respectively.

The Blues are showing improvement this season under new boss Xabi Alonso in the Premier League, having earned 13 points from four wins in seven matches (D1, L2) and scored 17 goals, the third highest so far. However, more needs to be done, especially in defence, with the Stamford Bridge side having been breached 13 times.

Spurs, meanwhile, have six points from their seven top flight matches ahead of this game (W1, D3, L3). Roberto De Zerbi's side escaped relegation last season by the skin of their teeth, and while it is too early to draw conclusions, the Italian's first full season after the opening matches is not looking great and could be another battle to avoid the drop when it is all said and done.

Here, Football Whispers takes a look at how Palmer and Kudus compare statistically, using Premier League data from the ongoing 2026-27 season.

Player Comparison

Total stats — Season 2026/27

Player Comparison

Statistique	Cole Palmer Chelsea Premier League · 2026/27	Mohammed Kudus Tottenham Hotspur Premier League · 2026/27
Volume Minutes played	621	275
Passing Passes	234	110
Successful Passes %	82.05%	89.09%
Duels Total Duels	69	50
Duels won	33	28
Attack Goals scored	2	0
Assists	3	2
Successful Dribbles	10	14
Dispossessed	13	5
Shots	23	7
Through Balls	0	0
Big chances created	6	2
Discipline Yellow cards	2	0
Fouls	8	4
Fouls drawn	12	9

2 joueurs comparés

Cole Palmer vs Mohammed Kudus: How do they compare?

Palmer has appeared in seven Premier League matches this season for Chelsea, starting all seven. In five of those, the Englishman has completed the full 90 minutes, giving him a total of 621 minutes. Kudus, on the other hand, has started two of his six league appearances for Spurs so far, with the rest as a substitute. He has completed no full 90-minute matches, with his total minutes played pegged at 275, a staggering 346-minute difference between them.

It is worth mentioning that Kudus' long-term injury contributed to how the coach has managed his appearances this season, but having started the team's last two games, he will definitely be available to start against the Blues on Saturday. That said, Palmer and Kudus exhibit major differences in their passing volume, distribution, and overall involvement, which is largely due to their respective roles as a regular starter and an impact substitute for Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur, respectively.

Palmer has successfully completed 192 of his 234 passes at an 82.05% success rate. Due to Kudus' restricted minutes on the pitch, his overall passing volume is 110 passes in six games, with 98 of them being successful, giving the Ghanaian a pass accuracy of 89.09%.

The Chelsea man leads the goalscoring comparison with two goals to the Ghanaian international's none and is also ahead in the assists tally of three compared to Kudus' two. The proximity in this area shows how close both players can be in creativity, provided their teammates can duly convert them. At the moment, Palmer leads in overall goal involvements, but should Kudus stay fit all through the season, he can compete favourably in this regard.

Palmer and Kudus show a stark contrast in their shooting metrics and threat on target for their respective clubs. Chelsea's no. 10 has been heavily involved in Alonso's attack, registering 23 shots with six of them on target; this translates to roughly 1.6 shots on target per 90 minutes. Kudus, meanwhile, is yet to find his shooting range for Spurs; as a result, the 26-year-old has not registered an official shot on target in league play this season for De Zerbi's outfit.

So far, Palmer has been the better creator, not just in assists earned but also in big chances created. The former Manchester City player has created six big chances for his teammates, while Kudus has crafted two; interestingly, those two resulted in goals for Spurs. However, Kudus currently excels more in dribbling despite his limited minutes. The former West Ham United midfielder has racked up 14 successful dribbles. His per-90 output is exceptionally high at 5.7, leading the Tottenham squad in take-on metrics with a strong 63.2% success rate. Palmer, who has logged nearly every minute for Chelsea so far, has 10 successful dribbles for the club, with a frequency of 1.8 successful dribbles per 90 and a 56.3% success rate.

Chelsea currently enjoy a dominant, undisputed winning streak against Spurs in the Premier League. Coming into this fixture, the Blues have won the last six consecutive top-flight matches against their London rivals.

As all roads lead to Stamford Bridge for the blockbuster showdown on Saturday, both midfielders arrive in strong recent form; Kudus bagged two assists in Tottenham's last three league outings, while Palmer registered the same number in the Blues' last four skirmishes. Putting these players side by side, it will either be business as usual for Chelsea or an end to the humiliation for Tottenham, depending on how our comparison subjects perform for their teams.