When Cole Palmer could return to Chelsea action as ‘surgery’ news emerges
Cole Palmer’s timeline to returning to full fitness for Chelsea has been revealed as a decision over whether he should have surgery has now been taken.
Cole Palmer has grown into one of the Premier League and world’s best players during his time at Chelsea, but has struggled to get going this season amid ongoing injury issues.
Palmer missed Chelsea’s wins against West Ham and Fulham in August after suffering a groin injury during the warm up at the London Stadium, and he returned to score two goals in three games before picking up another issue against Man United.
Enzo Maresca soon announced that Palmer would not play again until after October’s international break, and he has remained sidelined ever since.
Football Insider revealed on Wednesday (8 October) that Chelsea fear that Palmer’s groin injury is worse than originally believed, and a new update has now emerged on when fans can expect him to play again and if he requires surgery.
Palmer set to return in November with no surgery required
Palmer had initially been expected to return at some point this month, but that has seemed increasingly unlikely with supporters left in the dark over his recovery timeline up to now.
The Mail‘s Kieran Gill (8 October) has revealed in his new column that Palmer is more likely to play for Chelsea once again in November, and it will be “weeks,” not days or months, before he is back on the pitch.
It is unclear whether the England international will return before or after the international break scheduled for next month, as that is dependent on how his injury heals, with Chelsea facing Wolves on 8 November and then Burnley on 22 November.
The official diagnosis from the club is that Palmer has a strained groin, but the Mail have reported that his issue is not severe enough to require surgery, which will be music to the ears of Blues fans.
Jorrel Hato did not make Palmer’s injury worse after concerning video footage
Palmer watched on with glee as Chelsea beat Liverpool 2-1 last time out thanks to Estevao’s added-time winner, but concerns were sparked online after the game as footage emerged of teammate Jorrel Hato jumping on him and the England man then wincing in pain.
Despite fans’ worries that Hato accidentally aggravated Palmer’s injury, Gill’s same column states that the Dutch defender did not make anything worse and the pair were actually laughing about the incident moments later.
It was described as “an innocuous incident” after a huge victory in the report, and so supporters and Hato can rest safe in the knowledge that no harm was done.
Maresca will want Palmer back as soon as possible as Chelsea aim to consolidate themselves near the top of the table, but there will obviously be no rush, especially since they only face one team, Tottenham, sat above them in the Premier League in their next four games.