It’s difficult to overstate Cole Palmer’s importance to Chelsea, but it’s probably reflected in how determined head coach Enzo Maresca has been to have him at his disposal this season despite a persistent, niggling groin injury. The Blues have now paid a significant price for that over-reliance on the 23-year-old, with the attacker – who has already been sidelined for close to a month – now ruled out until December, in a crushing blow to his club and his World Cup hopes.
Palmer has only made four appearances in all competitions this season; after pulling out of the starting line-up on the second Premier League matchday of the campaign, he returned prematurely in spite of the ongoing problem in September and was inevitably forced back onto the treatment table as the wear and tear on his groin became too much to bear.
Having already missed a month of action, Maresca has now revealed that Chelsea’s talisman requires a further six weeks to recover, meaning he won’t be seen until late November at the earliest and will be sidelined for at least nine club matches between now and then, in what will be a defining period for the Blues’ long-term prospects in 2025-26. The only silver lining is that, for now, he doesn’t require surgery.
It also means he will be forced to sit out a third England camp in a row in November, having been unavailable to Thomas Tuchel in both September and October through the same injury, and – despite his obvious talent – his hopes of going to the World Cup next summer are now under serious threat as the German tactician looks to reward those who have performed consistently for him so far.