Palmer sidelined for minimum six weeks as Chelsea handed major Badiashile injury blow | OneFootball

Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca has provided fresh injury updates on Cole Palmer and Benoit Badiashile ahead of Saturday's trip to Nottingham Forest.

Initial reports suggested that Palmer would remain sidelined until early November due to a persistent groin problem.

Based on this, he was expected to miss the next four Chelsea games, including the Champions League clash with Ajax, but Maresca may now have to plan his team without the key midfielder for even more matches.

"I was wrong. Unfortunately, he needs to be out for six more weeks," the Italian head coach said in Friday's press conference when speaking about Palmer's injury situation.

"Yes, absolutely (no surgery). We just try to protect Cole as much as we can.

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"The medical team are not magicians. We hope six weeks are enough.

"It's a problem we need to see step by step, week after week. But for sure, he will be okay. He looks very good, relaxed.

"He is trying to recover. He is doing all that he needs to do."

Palmer has already missed Chelsea's last four games after his early substitution in the defeat to Manchester United in September.

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In addition to Palmer's extended absence, Maresca also confirmed that Badiashile has sustained a new injury that will keep him out for over a month.

"Unfortunately, Benoit will be out until December - injury again, a muscular problem," Maresca explained.

As Maresca said, this is such an unfortunate injury, particularly since Badiashile has recently returned from a muscle injury himself that forced him to miss the first 10 games of the season.

He has only featured three times this season, including against Liverpool before the international break, in which he had to be taken off mid-game after sustaining a knock.