Enzo Maresca issues injury update on Cole Palmer after latest Chelsea blow | OneFootball

Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca has provided a fresh update on Cole Palmer after his injury woes resurfaced during Saturday’s 2-1 defeat to Manchester United at Old Trafford.

Palmer has been struggling with a groin issue since the summer. He missed Premier League wins against West Ham United and Fulham and came off the bench against Brentford.

The 23-year-old lasted 90 minutes in the 3-1 Champions League defeat to Bayern Munich.

However, he only lasted 21 minutes at Old Trafford in what was his first start for Chelsea since the goalless draw against Crystal Palace in the Premier League curtain raiser.

He had to make way for Andrey Santos barely minutes after the Blues had been forced into two early changes.

Speaking at his pre-match press conference, Maresca provided an update on Palmer’s fitness.

“Cole probably is the only one that we need to assess a little bit,” he said.

“He already did a huge effort last Saturday. He was not 100%. He wants to be there to help the team. It’s day by day to see how he is. The rest are okay.”

The Italian head coach also eased fears of potential surgery, claiming that the club’s medical staff had not raised that option at this stage.

“The medical staff didn’t mention to me about surgery until today. I don’t know about the next weeks, but I don’t think so to be honest.”

Palmer’s substitution etched Chelsea’s name into the history books.

Goalkeeper Robert Sanchez’s red card inside five minutes had forced Maresca to sacrifice Estevao and Pedro Neto for Filip Jorgensen and Tosin Adarabioyo.

With Palmer subsequently going off, Chelsea became the first team in Premier League history to use three substitutions inside the opening 21 minutes of a match.

After suffering back-to-back defeats, Chelsea will be keen to get back to winning ways in the EFL Cup third round against League One side Lincoln City.