Evening Standard
·10 February 2026
Why Chelsea hope Cole Palmer has turned a corner in his fitness battle

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·10 February 2026

Palmer says he can ‘go to another level’ when fully fit and Wolves hat-trick suggested he is on right path
The hope at Chelsea is that Cole Palmer turned a corner at Molineux.
Palmer’s fourth hat-trick for Chelsea moved him ahead of Frank Lampard, Didier Drogba and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink as the club’s most prolific scorer of Premier League trebles, and his three goals inside 38 minutes against Wolves made him the first player in Premier League history to score a first-half hat-trick on three separate occasions.
The records tumbled for Palmer, and this explained why his substitution on the hour mark did not provoke groans or boos from travelling Chelsea supporters.
Instead, for once, there was an understanding of the need to manage his load. He had done his job. They had got to see vintage Palmer. It was time to rest him ahead of tonight’s home game against a somewhat resurgent Leeds, when Chelsea need him on the pitch and on song.

Palmer scored a first-half hat-trick against Wolves at the weekend
Chelsea FC via Getty Images
It was as a substitute against Leeds at Elland Road in December that Palmer made his first appearance in 74 days, following his longest lay-off of an injury-disrupted season due to a flare up of his recurring groin injury.
A frustratingly stop-start campaign for Palmer - who has also sustained and recovered from minor toe and thigh injuries along the way - has prevented the club and its fanbase from seeing the blistering best of the Englishman this term, but after his hat-trick at Molineux he admitted he feels he can “go to another level” once he is fully fit.
The real difficulty with navigating his groin problem is that one day it is completely unnoticeable to Palmer, the next day so painful he has to be careful how intensely he trains.
This has led to mutterings that have rumbled on all season about whether he needs surgery to fully fix the issue, with a World Cup this summer closing in fast. Yet there is no suggestion surgery has been formally discussed by medical staff, nor that they internally see it as the right option. So 45-minute and 60-minute appearances remain more common than 90-minute outings for Palmer.
“I don't think [I'm 100 per cent fit] just yet,” the 23-year-old admitted at the weekend.
“People don't know what goes on behind the scenes, but being injured the whole season is not ideal when I'm not able to perform as I want to. Hopefully, I can get over the injury soon by managing it.

Palmer has struggled with a recurring groin problem this season
Chelsea FC via Getty Images
“I still feel like I can help the team, but when I'm back to full fitness, I feel like I can go to another level.”
Liam Rosenior believes Palmer is “world class” and is intent on squeezing the very best out of him, but all in good time. Just as important to he and his staff is protecting him against serious injury.
It was perhaps telling that when asked on Monday whether Palmer was going to be able to play the full 90 minutes against Leeds, who beat Chelsea in December, Rosenior’s carefully worded reply was: “He’s available”. Rosenior has to be non-committal - not only managing his star player’s minutes but also fans’ expectations.
Palmer’s first-half romp in Wolverhampton did appear it could be the catalyst for a more impactful, more enjoyable second half of the season than first. While two of his three goals were penalties, there was a ruthless edge to the way he scored the third from a sweeping open-play move, and his passing vision and confidence on the ball both seemed on the up as compared with recent weeks.
If he can also have a decisive influence at Stamford Bridge tonight, it will become even harder to deny that the Palmer of old is making a return.
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