Alan Shearer slams Raheem Sterling for taking penalty off Cole Palmer in Chelsea’s FA Cup win over Leicester and dismisses ‘bulls***’ Micah Richards’ theory about the Blues under-fire forward

Alan Shearer has criticized Raheem Sterling for taking a penalty instead of Cole Palmer – and missing it – during Chelsea’s FA Cup quarter-final win over Leicester on Sunday.

Leading 1-0 at Stamford Bridge thanks to Marc Cucurella’s goal, the Blues were awarded a penalty midway through the first half when Sterling was brought down in the box by Leicester winger Abdul Fatawu.

Palmer, Chelsea’s designated penalty taker, looked set to place the ball on play, only for Sterling to knock it out of his hands.

But the former England international’s tame effort down the middle was stopped by the legs of Jakub Stolarczyk.

Palmer has scored 16 goals in all competitions this season, including five from the penalty spot in as many attempts.

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Sterling, meanwhile, has eight goals in all competitions this season, but he has more missed penalties in his career than he has scored in his career – five to four.

The 29-year-old’s poor record from the spot and Palmer’s impeccable conversion rate made Sterling’s decision to take the penalty even more difficult to understand, according to Shearer.

“What’s going on over there?” Seriously, I was angry and I didn’t care,” the Newcastle legend told The Rest Is Football podcast on Monday.

“I was thinking, ‘Why the hell is he taking the ball away from Palmer?’” Palmer scored five of five.

“He (Palmer) has been Chelsea’s best player, he looks confident when he takes them on.

“Why would you even consider removing it?” Why would you want to promote yourself when you have a record like that?

Co-host Micah Richards intervened by suggesting that Sterling, who has scored one goal in his last 12 Premier League appearances, had in fact been offered the chance to take the penalty by Palmer.

“It’s confidence. Cole Palmer is flying, but sometimes an in-form striker would give it to a player who is suffering a bit in confidence,” he said.

“Just to get his confidence back.” No disrespect, it was Leicester at home.

Shearer, however, quickly dismissed this suggestion.

“What do you mean trust?” Bulls***. It’s the FA Cup quarter-finals, mate,” he said.

“Forget who you’re playing or who you want to be nice to and all that crap. Give the penalty to the shooter.

“Forget all that, it’s nice, “I want to regain my confidence” and all that. It’s not in the pens.

“Cole Palmer is in the bullpen and he made it, five out of five. Come down, I’ll take it, it’s simple.

After Sterling’s missed penalty, Palmer finally doubled Chelsea’s lead just before the break, only for Leicester to equalize in the second half thanks to an Axel Disasi own goal and a brilliant finish from Stephy Mavididi.

But Carney Chukwuemeka and Noni Madueke, who replaced Sterling, both scored in injury time to earn Chelsea a 4-2 victory and a semi-final place against Manchester City.

As well as missing from the penalty spot, Sterling also sent a glorious opportunity wide of the post after being sent one-on-one with the Leicester keeper in the first half.

And after the former Liverpool and Man City star scored a free-kick in the second half, Chelsea fans responded with loud boos for the 29-year-old.

Mauricio Pochettino said supporters had every right to boo Sterling, but insisted he would never be pressured to hang a player as he has vowed to support his striker.

“The feelings weren’t good for him but we’re going to support him. He’s got an incredible CV,” he said.

“Today he missed the penalty and a few chances but I am happy with him and I will support him. We have to accept the situation. Football fans live with hope. Fans have the right to say what they want.

“I hope that in the next match our fans will still be unconditionally behind the team because we represent Chelsea. We want to make our fans happy and we will try.