2 weeks ago
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Chelsea have suffered a major injury blow with Cole Palmer now ruled out until the end of November because of a persistent groin problem
Cole Palmer is expected to remain out for six more weeks in a fresh blow for Chelsea and Enzo Maresca.
The 23-year-old has endured an injury-hit start to the season, having made just four appearances in all competitions. He last featured in the 2-1 defeat at Manchester United on Saturday, September 20.
Palmer has since missed the last four matches and it now appears that he is set for a more extended period out, according to Blues head coach Maresca. "I was wrong [about Palmer]," he said on Friday.
"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 okay."
If Chelsea's diagnosis is correct and Palmer doesn't return for another six weeks, his first game back will be a mouthwatering clash against Arsenal at Stamford Bridge on Sunday, November 30.
He would miss nine club fixtures - and two England matches - before that, however. Starting off with Saturday's trip to Nottingham Forest, Palmer would then sit out of back-to-back home games against Ajax in the Champions League next Wednesday and then Sunderland the following weekend.
The ex-Manchester City man won't make it for the Carabao Cup fourth round tie at Wolves, a trip to Tottenham in the Premier League, a fixture at Qarabag in the Champions League and then another game against Wolves, this time in the top flight, before the third international break of the season.
Palmer wouldn't be available for selection as England face Serbia and Albania in two World Cup qualifiers in November, and then he would miss just two more club games before returning to action.
A trip to Burnley and a blockbuster home game against Barcelona in the Champions League are the final two matches in the additional six-week block that Palmer is set to miss.
Palmer started the Premier League season opener against Crystal Palace and was named in the XI to face West Ham a week later, but he was forced to withdraw from the side after injuring his groin in the warm-up.
After missing three weeks, Palmer returned following the September international break as a substitute against Brentford and it looked like he had shaken off and recovered from that initial groin problem.
He scored in the draw at the Gtech Community Stadium before finding the net once again, this time from the start at Bayern Munich in the Champions League. However, after starting at Manchester United three days later, Palmer was forced to come off inside the first quarter and he hasn't played since.
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