Another England call and another snub for the Chelsea midfielder. And it was a snub. Tuchel confirming during the announcement of his squad to meet Croatia and Spain in Nations League ties that he'd not put in a call to Palmer to explain his decision.
He had done so for the likes of Dan Burn, Dean Henderson, and Palmer's Blues teammate Jordan Henderson, who had also missed England's last camp. But for Chelsea's No10, there was no contact. No explanation. As we say, Tuchel can state things diplomatically in public, but his actions scream much louder. The Three Lions coach simply doesn't want Palmer around.
"He generally misses out on too many occasions for England," explained Tuchel. "That's just a fact. It's not his fault, but it's also not my fault and not our fault. And not only did he miss last camp, he missed an excellent camp.
"So he missed out and the consequence is that we stick to the group that were excellent and that's the situation."
But it's not just the skipped England get-togethers of the past. If that was the lone factor, if it was just a matter of being loyal to those who had shown up last time, then Josh King would not have earned his first call-up. The Fulham youngster now appearing to have leapt ahead of Palmer in Tuchel's thinking in terms of No10s.
For this column, the Nations League and such international breaks are all a bit ho-hum. Mickey Mouse. It's difficult to get excited about such a contrived competition. But Tuchel's attitude towards Palmer and it's consequences is worth digging into. The relationship has already cost him a World Cup experience. And it appears he's way, way down in Tuchel's thinking for the Euros in 2028. Something isn't quite chiming here.
Yes, Palmer's form so far this season has been more solid than spectacular. There's been no 5-star performances. No match-winning displays. But if he was regarded by Tuchel as one he'd like in his squad for the Euros, then you fancy the German would be keen to keep him involved. To keep the communication lines open. But that door has been shut. And it's becoming more and more obvious, if given the right options, Tuchel will happily take anyone over Palmer.
Along with King, another rookie in Jobe Bellingham, of Borussia Dortmund, is in this week's squad. Another No10. Bellingham hasn't been pulling up any trees for Dortmund this season, but like King, he received a call while Palmer was blanked. For Palmer, this England ship may've already sailed.
So why the snub? Why the rejection? Well, Graeme Souness may've put his finger on it earlier this season. The Liverpool great, on his newly-launched podcast, was chatting with Matt Le Tisser about attacking talents and Palmer's name was raised. Souness began by stating he had no problem with the Chelsea player's ability nor quality, but he then went onto relay a first-hand account of how Palmer deals with the public...
"I witnessed something last Valentine's night in the Middle East [Dubai in February]. I was in a restaurant. This young lawyer from Cheslyn Hay says 'I think I'll go and get a selfie with Cole Palmer.' This guy goes over, says, 'Excuse me Cole, can I have a selfie please?'
"Cole Palmer stops, looks him up and down like this, and said, 'Nah'."
Souness went on, "Now, that tells me he has taken that off [someone] of how he thinks big players act. Does he think, 'I'm that good that I can't spend seven or eight seconds having a picture taken with this fellow who's been very polite?'
"That really, really bugs me that, and let me have a rant here for a minute. The very best example of the opposite of that would have been a guy who died just recently, Kevin Keegan. I just wish that these guys like Cole Palmer, they could have spent a day with Kevin Keegan and seen how a true superstar, how he acted, how he behaved... some of these guys need a word in their ear to understand if you're a big player how you should behave."
Souness is no Robinson Crusoe here. Just a few weeks later, English news pundit Michelle Dewberry called out Palmer after a video surfaced of him refusing to sign an autograph for a young fan, pleading "please Cole, please Cole", all the while he was wearing a Chelsea shirt with 'Palmer' on his back. Instead the player, in his hoodie, wouldn't even give the lad a nod as he trudged on.
"I just think, Cole, you're an absolute douchebag," snapped Dewberry. "You seem to be forgetting the kind of people who put you where you are.
"Now, a little boy. You're obviously his hero, and he's wearing your name for goodness sakes. Even a hello, just a simple smile would do, would it not?"
Great player. Incredible talent. But as a man. As a personality... Perhaps this is why Tuchel - if he can help it - doesn't want Palmer around. Indeed in Spain, they're still bitter about Palmer's antics three years on since the U21 Euros final. Then with Manchester City, Palmer sparked a brawl and emptied both benches as he celebrated scoring for England in front of Spain's staff.
Real Sociedad's outstanding wing-back Sergio Gomez was a City teammate of Palmer's at the time and later admitted he and his teammates were stunned by his attitude: "It surprised me.
"He didn't want to apologise or anything - unlike some of his other teammates."
Of course, we've seen the opposite from Palmer. Posing with young players. Signing autographs. But when the PR Dollys aren't around. When it's someone else holding the camera phone. We get a very different story.
And this stuff matters. Certainly Tuchel believes so. The German having stated in the past: "It is very important that we don't select just for talent, but also for what we need from a player.
"What the social skills are of a player, is he a good team-mate? Can he support if his role is maybe the supporting role? So, this is where the focus is. It will demand a lot of our social skills, how we are together as a group, and we need to get the nomination right."
Ability? Quality? You can't argue against Cole Palmer. Put him up against King, Morgan Gibbs-White, Jobe Bellingham and even a miss-firing Ebere Eze and on pure football terms, you take Palmer every time. But on "social skills"? Attitude? When the camera's off and those who matter see how he deals with people, it's becoming clear that Cole Palmer is anything but up to standard.
A smile. A nod. For someone of Palmer's status, it doesn't take much to lift a fan. Instead, it appears he's been happier to make people feel small when approaching him. And those whom matter have noticed. Perhaps even Thomas Tuchel.