Chelsea will be without Cole Palmer for their London derby with Fulham on Saturday due to the groin injury that prevented him featuring in last week’s 5-1 win over West Ham
Cole Palmer will not feature for Chelsea in their London derby with Fulham this weekend as a result of the groin injury that led to him missing last week’s 5-1 win at West Ham.
Palmer, 23, was shown leaving the field shortly before the conclusion of the Blues’ warm-up at the London Stadium, with Enzo Maresca later pulling the No 10 from his line-up. It was confirmed after the match that Palmer had been nursing a groin injury and he has since been omitted from Thomas Tuchel’s latest England squad on Friday.
That development fuelled speculation that Palmer would be unavailable for selection this weekend, which Maresca confirmed in his pre-match press conference. “Cole is out, Benoit (Badisahile) is out, Romeo (Lavia) is out and the rest are OK,” the Italian said.
“Cole, we need to see day by day. Romeo and Benoit, I don’t think they will be back after the international break but they will be closer.”
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Palmer was one of several big names omitted from Tuchel’s England squad, which came as no surprise after pulling out of last week’s trip to West Ham at the last minute. Maresca’s comments, however, indicate that the issue may not be as severe as first feared.
On Tuchel’s decision to leave Palmer out of his squad for next month’s World Cup qualifying fixtures against Andorra and Serbia, Maresca added: “I spoke with Thomas a few times. It’s Thomas’ decision. He’s not available tomorrow so it is quite normal that he has shown he has some problems.”
Willian Estevao was drafted into the team following Palmer’s injury against West Ham and caught the eye in the Blues’ comprehensive win, bagging an assist in the process. Chelsea have also bolstered their attack this summer with the signings of Liam Delap and Joao Pedro, who are likely to shoulder the goalscoring burden against Fulham on Saturday with Palmer out.
Maresca was asked if he was confident Chelsea would cope without their talisman and replied: “When Cole is not in the game, we need to find different solutions. Hopefully tomorrow we can do the same.”
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