Cole Palmer's injury has been put down to Chelsea's "bizarre, wrong and impossible" schedule, with club icon Pat Nevin spelling out Enzo Maresca's "biggest challenge" so far. The 23-year-old has been ruled out for at least another six weeks, as revealed by the Italian manager in a press conference before resuming Premier League commitments after the international break with a clash against Nottingham Forest at the City Ground.
Chelsea's star man sidelined in shock setback
Palmer, who was Chelsea’s talisman last term with 15 Premier League goals, has not kicked a competitive ball since September 20, when a groin issue flared up again just weeks into the campaign. The problem first surfaced during Chelsea’s rushed pre-season, which came a month after their Club World Cup triumph. It was the beginning of a chaotic schedule that left players physically spent before the new season even began. Now, the man once hailed as the heartbeat of Maresca’s project finds himself stuck on the sidelines, and his manager admits he misjudged the extent of his injury.
While addressing the situation, Maresca held his hands up and admitted, "I was wrong [about Palmer]. Unfortunately, he needs to be out for six more weeks. We try to protect Cole as much as we can. The most important thing is when he comes back, he is fully fit. The medical staff are not magicians. We hope six weeks are enough. We need to see it step by step. For sure, he's going to be OK."
Even as Chelsea scramble to reshuffle, Maresca is under no illusion about Palmer’s importance.
"First of all, to replace Cole, it's difficult," Maresca admitted. "Cole is a very important player for us, one of the best in the league. The ones we have, in Cole's position against Liverpool was Malo Gusto. The game vs Benfica was Facundo [Buonanotte]. It depends on the game plan we have. We don't have another player like Cole. Cole is unique."
Advertisement(C)Getty ImagesNevin's verdict on Palmer's injury
Nevin didn’t hold back when assessing the root cause of Palmer’s injury. Speaking to he slammed the club’s pre-season planning as unsustainable.
"Palmer is the same as everyone, not in terms of quality, but in terms of he's one of those things called a human being," he said. “The physicality of what Chelsea players have gone through, it's going to get to them and we know it's going to get them. And it's not a maybe, it's a when, not if. So Cole's getting a little bit of it now. Because he played all through the summer, I thought a big hit would happen around November, December time. I thought that sort of time you'd start seeing a lot of injuries and form dipping with a number of players."
Nevin went on to warn that Maresca’s biggest test this season isn’t tactical, but it’s managing physical fatigue, thanks to an undercooked pre-season.
"Chelsea's pre-season was two games in three days. It's bizarre, it's wrong, it's impossible," he asserted. "So it's going to hit them. And that's going to be Enzo Maresca’s biggest challenge this season. He's got a good enough squad for the top four. There's no doubt. But how you get a good enough, fit enough squad for top four, that's what we need to find out.
"So what it is all about is having enough of a squad and being comfortable in a position that you can rest and also you can accept, obviously suspensions but injuries as well. So Cole, he's one of the first ones, but have a look back at centre-back. Chelsea finished off the game against Liverpool with I think their sixth and seventh choice centre-halves."
Injury crisis deepens at Stamford Bridge
Palmer isn’t the only name on Chelsea’s ever-growing injury list as Maresca confirmed several other first-team stars are still battling it out in the treatment room.
"Levi [Colwill] and Liam [Delap] are still out," he added. "Unfortunately Benoit [Badiashile] will be out until December, a muscle problem. We are going to wait for him. Moi [Caicedo], Enzo [Fernandez] and Pedro [Neto] did not take part in the session yesterday. We will see if they can train today. Reece is OK, he is fully fit."
During the international break, Cobham was less of a training ground and more of a rehabilitation camp. Fernandez checked in early from the Argentina camp, Caicedo did not join his Ecuadorian teammates, and Joao Pedro stayed behind to prevent his injury from further aggravation.
gettyA painful run ahead without Palmer
Palmer’s prolonged absence couldn’t come at a worse time. Chelsea face a brutal run of fixtures over the next six weeks, including clashes with Ajax, Sunderland, Wolves (twice), Tottenham, Qarabag, Burnley, Barcelona, and Arsenal. And it’s not just Chelsea feeling the sting as England boss Thomas Tuchel will be watching nervously too. Palmer, who has yet to cement his spot under the German manager, is set to miss England’s World Cup qualifiers against Serbia and Albania. However, England fans can breathe easy as The Three Lions have already booked their place at the 2026 World Cup.
