Chelsea forward Joao Pedro has lavished praise on teammate Cole Palmer and manager Xabi Alonso, describing the England international as a 'complete player' and crediting the former Liverpool midfielder's winning mentality ahead of the club's Premier League fixture against Everton on 17 October. The London side are targeting a push further into the top six as the season gains momentum.

Pedro's verdict on Cole Palmer

Pedro, who leads Chelsea's scoring charts with five goals this season, left little doubt about his admiration for Palmer's all-round ability. 'Cole Palmer is a beast, he can score, he can pass. He can score from free kicks. He can do everything. He's a complete player and that's what makes him special. He scored amazing goals in our matches against Fulham and Brighton & Hove Albion. I don't know how he did it but that's just Cole Palmer things and that's why everyone says he's a special player,' Pedro said in an interview with JioStar.

Pedro also detailed how the front three — comprising himself, Palmer, and Morgan Rogers — operates as a unit. 'Whenever I see Palmer, I always try to get the ball to his feet, and he always manages to put it past the goalkeeper. For Morgan Rogers, I try to play the ball into space, to put him in 1v1 situations. Once he beats the defender, he passes the ball to me and my job is just to make the runs. If I do that, they will find me, and then it's up to me to put the ball in the back of the net,' he explained.

Alonso's winning mentality sets the tone

The Brazilian forward pointed to Alonso's player-first communication style as a key driver of Chelsea's collective ambition this campaign. 'Our gaffer Xabi Alonso is very open with us because he used to play football so, he understands our mind. The first meeting we had with him was like he's very passionate. He wants to win every game possible. So, it's very good for us because we are thinking in the same way,' Pedro noted.

This comes amid a broader shift in Chelsea's attacking philosophy under Alonso, who took charge earlier this year. The manager's emphasis on collective contribution — rather than reliance on any single star — appears to be bearing fruit in their early-season output.

Goals from everywhere — the Chelsea threat

Pedro stressed that Chelsea's scoring threat is deliberately spread across the squad, making them difficult to contain defensively. 'Everyone in the team wants to score goals and Xabi always tells us it doesn't matter what happens, you just need to be focused and be connected to the game and you're going to score. That's why we have scored many goals this season from the beginning because in the front three, you can create a lot of chances and if you create a lot, you're going to score a lot of goals as well. For us, it is not just about one player. Cole, Morgan, and I all chip in, but the midfielders and defenders also help with goals from set pieces. That makes us hard to defend against because the threat can come from anywhere,' he added.

Caicedo: the engine behind the attack

Pedro reserved some of his strongest words for midfielder Moises Caicedo, arguing the Ecuadorian international is the best player in his position globally. 'Moises, for me, he's the best in his position in the world. He's a machine. He covers so much ground in midfield and wins the ball back so many times. That gives the rest of us the freedom to go forward and attack. When he is playing, we feel more secure as a team because we know he is there to protect the back four. So that's why he's very important for us,' said Pedro.

Notably, the freedom Caicedo provides is what allows the front three to operate with the aggression and positioning that has made Chelsea one of the more threatening attacking sides in the early weeks of the season. With the Everton clash on the horizon, all eyes will be on whether this combination continues to click.