Cole Palmer suffers new injury setback at Chelsea in freak accident | Football

Cole Palmer has suffered a new injury setback at Chelsea after fracturing his toe this week.

Palmer has been sidelined since September after he was forced off in the defeat against Manchester United due to a groin problem.

The 23-year-old was in line to return for Chelsea’s Champions League tie at home to Barcelona next Tuesday.

However, Enzo Maresca has revealed that the midfielder will now miss Saturday’s Premier League game against Burnley, next week’s match against Barcelona and their Premier League fixture at home to Arsenal on November 30.

It is understood that Palmer suffered the injury by stubbing his left toe on a door at night.

‘He is probably not available for tomorrow for sure, Barcelona for sure or Arsenal for sure,’ Maresca said on Friday.

‘Unfortunately, he had an accident at home two days ago, he hit his toe.

‘But it is nothing important but for sure he is not back in the next week. It’s fractured.

‘The only thing we know he is not available for this week and next week.

‘It can happen, I can wake up many times during the night to go to the toilet and hit my head, hit my leg, everything can happen.’

Asked if Palmer is wearing a protective boot, Maresca replied: ‘The last time I saw him was yesterday morning and he was without socks, without flip-flops, he was without nothing. I saw him in the changing room.

‘I don’t know how he is today. He wasn’t limping, he was walking okay. The problem is the small toe, so the contact with the ball is a little bit painful.’

When it was suggested that Chelsea could cope in Palmer’s absence, Maresca replied: ‘Absolutely not.

‘I don’t think that. The teammates are better with Cole playing, I feel much better when Cole is inside the pitch, and we all want Cole on the pitch. When Cole is not on the pitch we have to find a solution.

‘The team is doing fantastic, the team is doing very well, also I think for any manager it’s nice when you miss a player but at the end the team still plays in the way you want to lay. But in the end, we are better with Cole.’

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