Cole Palmer Archives

Chelsea boss Rosenior breaks silence on Palmer’s homesickness reports

Chelsea boss Liam Rosenior said Cole Palmer remains “very happy” at the club despite reports the 23-year-old is homesick in London.

Manchester-born Palmer moved to Stamford Bridge in 2023 from Manchester City and quickly developed into the Blues’ star player during his first two seasons in London.

But Palmer has been beset by injury problems this season which have limited his impact.

“I’ve had numerous conversations with Cole and he seems very happy to be here,” said Rosenior on Friday.

“He’s a huge part of our plans in the long term. He’s an outstanding player. Every player goes through difficult moments in their career in terms of injury. It’s not any reflection of his quality.”

Palmer scored from the penalty spot and played the full 90 minutes in a 2-0 win over Brentford last weekend.

But the England international was then left out of Wednesday’s Champions League victory over Pafos due to an ongoing groin injury.

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Palmer has returned to training and is in contention to feature in Sunday’s trip to Crystal Palace.

But Rosenior suggested he will have to continue to restrict Palmer’s minutes until he is back to full fitness.

“My job, the club’s job, is to get him to a place where he can consistently perform at the level he wants to,” added Rosenior.

“There was frustration in the Brentford game, not because he wasn’t happy, but because he was in pain and couldn’t perform to the level he wanted to for the club.

“He’s a great kid but we have to make sure we look after him in the right way. That’s why I haven’t involved him in the last game.”

Chelsea sit sixth in the Premier League but just two points adrift of fourth-placed Liverpool in the battle for a place in next season’s Champions League.

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Major update on Palmer’s availability ahead of Arsenal clash

Cole Palmer is fit to start Chelsea’s summit meeting with Premier League leaders Arsenal this weekend after more than two months on the sidelines, manager Enzo Maresca said Friday.

The England forward has not played for the club since September 20 — initially missing with a groin problem before fracturing a toe.

Maresca told his pre-match press conference that Palmer was fit enough to play from the start in Sunday’s match at Stamford Bridge.

A win for the second-placed Blues would lift them just three points behind the Gunners at the top of the Premier League.

“Everyone is happy, his teammates are happy, we are all happy, and the most important thing is that Cole is happy because in the end, football players want to play games,” said the Chelsea boss.

Palmer, 23, was Chelsea’s top scorer in the Premier League last season, with 15 goals.

He has made just four appearances in all competitions for the club this season, scoring twice.

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“He is probably our best player,” said Maresca. “We are happy that he is back. Now we need to give him time, you know, to be 100 percent fit.

“But he has done fantastic in the past and no doubt that he is going to do very good for this club in the future.”

Brazilian wonderkid Estevao scored a stunning solo goal in Chelsea’s 3-0 win against Barcelona in the Champions League on Tuesday, burnishing his reputation.

Maresca admitted pairing Palmer with Estevao, 18, was an exciting prospect.

“Depends against which team, depends a little bit on the game plan, but for sure the fans are excited to watch both together,” he said.

“We also are excited, thinking that at the end we need always balance.”

Maresca, who won the UEFA Conference League and Club World Cup last season in his first campaign at Chelsea, said his team had made progress over the past year, but it was too soon to predict a title challenge.

“For sure it’s different compared to one year ago, and it’s because we spent one more year together,” he said. “We went through moments where we can learn from that moment. Then again, for me it’s very early.

“We are still at the end of November, December, so it’s very early and it’s important to be where we are now in March, April, and then we see.”

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Major blow for Chelsea as Palmer ruled out for six weeks

Cole Palmer has been ruled out of action for six more weeks with a groin problem, Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca said on Friday.

The England midfielder has not played since Chelsea’s 2-1 defeat at Manchester United on September 20 — when he came off midway through the first half.

Maresca initially said he hoped Palmer, 23, would be back after this month’s international break.

“I was wrong. Unfortunately, he needs to be out probably six more weeks. So, yes, this is the update,” he said.

The Italian, whose team travels to struggling Nottingham Forest on Saturday, said he was confident Palmer would not require surgery.

“We try just to protect Cole as much as we can, and the most important thing is that when he comes back, he’s fully recovered,” he added.

Maresca was asked at his pre-match press conference whether he was confident the extra rest would solve the issue.

“Yeah, but unfortunately, the medical staff are not magicians, you never know that,” he said.

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“Probably you need six weeks. We hope that six weeks will be enough, but it’s a problem that we need to see step by step, week after week. But for sure he’s going to be OK.”

Maresca said replacing “one of the best players in the Premier League” was difficult.

“For sure, we need to find a different solution, we need to find different skills, because we don’t have another player like Cole,” he said. “Because Cole is unique.”

Chelsea have also been beset by injury problems in defence, with the in-form Benoit Badiashile out “until December”.

“He was doing fantastic, he showed how good he is, he showed how we need him, and we’re going to wait for him,” said the Chelsea boss.

However, Tosin Adarabioyo, Wesley Fofana, and Reece James have overcome issues to be in contention to face Forest.

Maresca will be suspended for the trip to Nottingham after being sent off for his wild celebrations following Estevao’s late winner against Liverpool on October 4.

“The first reason is because since I joined the club we never won a game at home in the last minute,” he said, explaining his reaction.

“The other reason is because we were playing against the champions of England, they won the last Premier League, so it was an important moment for sure.

“For me personally it was just a reaction, just a passionate moment, just a normal reaction.”

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Enzo Maresca provides major update on Cole Palmer’s injury

Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca believes Cole Palmer will avoid groin surgery after the England forward was forced off during Saturday’s defeat against Manchester United.

Palmer has made just two Premier League starts this season and lasted only 21 minutes at Old Trafford before limping to the sidelines in a game Chelsea lost 2-1.

Asked whether the 23-year-old will need an operation on an injury that has been troubling him for a while, Maresca told reporters: “The medical staff, they didn’t mention to me about surgery.

“I don’t know if in the next days or the next weeks, but I don’t think so, to be honest.

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“He made a huge effort on Saturday to try to play the game. He did the test, he was OK but not 100 percent. But he wanted to be there to help his team-mates and to be there in that kind of game.

“Unfortunately, it was painful so we decided to change it. And it’s more day-by-day, week-by-week, game-by-game to see how it is and then decide what we do.”

Palmer is likely to miss Chelsea’s League Cup third-round tie at third-tier Lincoln on Tuesday, with Romeo Lavia and Benoit Badiashile also ruled out.

Maresca is likely to select several youth academy players but the Italian conceded it was a risky strategy given the potential for a cup upset against a team flying high in League One.

“These are the games that worry me most, because you can slip up very easily,” he said. “Football is full of these kind of games and I am very worried about that.”

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