Cole Palmer felt a niggle during Chelsea’s warm-up on Friday night and was withdrawn from the starting line-up as a precaution.
Palmer, who has been instrumental to Chelsea since his arrival from Manchester City in 2023, played through the groin problem against Crystal Palace on the opening weekend.
The 5-1 victory at the London Stadium would prove to be a game too far for the forward, however, and he was replaced in the squad by Estevao. Despite his absence, Chelsea ended up cruising to all three points, thanks to goals from Joao Pedro, Pedro Neto, Enzo Fernandes, Moises Caicedo and Trevoh Chalobah.
Is Chelsea’s Cole Palmer available this weekend?
Chelsea, who somewhat surprisingly won the Club World Cup this summer, have had a limited pre-season as a result of the competition in the United States.
Palmer, who could well have picked up the injury during that tournament, now faces a race against time to be fit for the visit of Fulham on Saturday lunchtime.
Although there isn’t a clear timeframe on Palmer’s injury or how long exactly he will be out for, it is thought that the knock is only minor.
“He's doing his own work in the pool, in the gym, just trying to take things as easy as possible for him and with him, so that he might be available for the match against Fulham on Saturday at lunchtime.” Said Sky Sports News reporter Gary Cotterill.
Whilst Chelsea’s match against Fulham may come too soon for Palmer, he may still be called into action for England during the international break.
Following England’s games against Andorra and Serbia, Chelsea will have a testing fixture against Brentford on September 13, followed by a trip to Old Trafford to play Manchester United on September 20.
