Chelsea 'hopeful' Cole Palmer will be fit for blockbuster Barcelona & Arsenal clashes as Enzo Maresca delivers injury update

Palmer initially suffered the setback before Chelsea’s 5–1 thrashing of West Ham in August, which forced him to pull out of the line-up at the last moment. He then sat out the win over Fulham before returning briefly after the September international break, only to aggravate the same problem again. Since then, it’s been a frustrating spell on the sidelines. He hasn’t featured since a 21-minute cameo in the 2-1 defeat to Manchester United on September 20, and his absence has stretched to nine games across all competitions. But now, with the Barcelona clash looming on November 25, there's cautious optimism that he could finally be back in blue.

Speaking ahead of Chelsea’s midweek trip to Qarabag, Maresca was asked if Palmer will be fit to face the Blaugrana at Stamford Bridge on November 25 and Arsenal five days later. He said: "We hope so, but with Cole we try to plan, we try to schedule, you know, at the beginning. Then we need to review that. So in this moment we go day by day with Cole. He's [still] not taking any session with the team. And we have Benoit Badiashile that probably can be available after the international break and that is huge news. To be honest, I would like to have Cole here tomorrow. I would like to have Cole early. I said many times that we are a better team with Cole. Unfortunately for us, he's out, he's injured, but for sure we want him back very soon."

While Maresca keeps his cards close to his chest, injury expert Ben Dinnery shed light on what Chelsea supporters can expect. Talking tofootball.london, via Escapist Magazine, Dinnery said: "It's sometimes not until the last stage, particularly if you're talking around a loading issue, where you could be fine for three, four or five days, and then all of a sudden, you just feel a little bit of intensity as you increase that intensity and increase that load. Ultimately, there's nothing fixed in terms of timeframe. I think we're looking at post-international break. We're coming up to a busy period in and around Christmas, and it's one of those ones where you could see Cole Palmer managed in terms of his minutes.

"Again, the factors around that could be how Chelsea are performing, and probably until last weekend, you would have said they're doing alright until that home defeat to Sunderland. They'll have an idea and understanding that when Cole Palmer does return, they want him fit and available not just for two, three, four or five games, but for the festive period to January and beyond through the remainder of the season."

Palmer isn’t the only name on Chelsea’s injury list. Pedro Neto, who has been a bright spark so far this season, is also set to miss the midweek trip to Azerbaijan with what Maresca described as a "small issue", suggesting he could be available for the Wolves game at Stamford Bridge on November 8. "Yeah, not a problem, just a small issue. So we try to protect him. He's not involved in tomorrow's game," the manager said.

Meanwhile, Romeo Lavia's long road back to full fitness appears to be reaching its conclusion. The young midfielder, who joined from Southampton in 2023, has endured a torrid run of injuries, making just 29 appearances in two years due to recurring muscle issues. Maresca, however, is refusing to rush the 21-year-old and compared his situation to Reece James's gradual comeback from long-term injury. 

The Chelsea boss revealed that he has already outlined a careful reintegration plan and said: "The main target for Romeo now is to be fit. Don't get any injuries. For me, at this moment, Romeo is where Reece was more or less one year ago in terms of back after a long time. We need to manage him every minute, every day, every second. And the target with him is just to keep him fit. So, he's training with us. He's OK. He's 100% fit. But we need to be very careful with him because we don't want him to be out again and finally he can enjoy being a football player.

"In the Forest game, we planned for him 45 minutes. Then Ajax, I think he played one hour, 70 minutes. The other day against Tottenham, when he was on, he was very good. We are happy with Romeo. We are happy with the way he's progressing. And the only thing we want is to keep him fit. So, I would like to have Romeo inside the pitch always. But it's my duty to try to protect also him."

For now, Chelsea's focus shifts to Wednesday’s daunting Champions League away fixture against Qarabag, which involved a long trip to Baku. They then return to Premier League action against Wolves on Saturday evening before travelling to Burnley on November 22 after the international break. After that, the Blues have two titanic fixtures against Barcelona and Arsenal, respectively, on November 25 and 30. If Palmer does make it back in time for those clashes, he could be the catalyst in attack against the two European heavyweights.