Youth Cup redemption, Sterling help, 'Prem soon come' - how Cole Palmer became Man City's most expensive academy graduate

Cole Palmer's first high-profile action on the big stage at Manchester City was to miss a decisive penalty in a major cup final.

City hosted rivals Liverpool in a tight FA Youth Cup final, with a 16-year-old Palmer coming off the bench in the 107th minute as one of the more inexperienced under-18s that year. As the final went to penalties, Palmer stepped up, but smashed his effort off the bar. It was the only miss in the shoot-out and Liverpool won the premier youth cup competition in England, extending City's wait to win it again.

Such an experience could have been the breaking of a young player, but it proved to be the making of Palmer. Fast forward four years and Palmer is a treble-winner and is now set to become City's most expensive academy graduate in their club history.

Palmer is close to a £45m move to Chelsea in search of more playing time, having helped City win the UEFA Super Cup in his final decisive action for his boyhood club. If that goal in Athens is how his City career ends, it is a fitting final chapter after the nightmare of his Liverpool penalty.

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There will be a degree of regret among City fans at Palmer's exit, having seen him battle adversity through the academy to become one of their most exciting attacking prospects. Fans have been with Palmer at every step, from the ups and downs in his two FA Youth Cup finals, to sharing away ends with him and watching him help them win two European titles.

After his Youth Cup final penalty miss against Liverpool, Palmer put his head down and progressed through the ranks in the academy. In the following two years, he scored 33 goals and provided 16 assists in 47 outings at academy