Chelsea star Cole Palmer has been carrying a niggling groin injury for some time, but a new problem means the Englishman is now facing some time out.
Cole Palmer forced off in 2-1 Chelsea defeat to Man United
Enzo Maresca’s frustration was evident during an afternoon to forget at Old Trafford last Saturday, with their 2-1 loss away to Man United made worse only by Palmer’s haunting groin issue.
It is a problem that has plagued the Blues’ superstar player for some time.
Palmer has been carrying it since the start of 2025/2026, forcing him to miss their wins over West Ham and Fulham, with the ex-Man City sensation only getting around half an hour of match action in their 2-2 draw at Brentford.
The 23-year-old got on the scoresheet against Keith Andrews’ side, and scored a stunning goal on the counter-attack in Chelsea’s 3-1 loss to Bayern Munich in the Champions League – all whilst playing with a groin injury.
Speaking in his latest pre-match press conference before Chelsea take on Lincoln City in the Carabao Cup, Maresca said it is a problem being monitored day by day, but was quick to quash fears that Palmer might need surgery.
“He [Palmer] did this morning [Saturday] a test. He wanted to play this game for the team, so the effort has been huge from him,” Maresca said about Palmer’s groin struggles.
“But then after 20 minutes he started to feel something, so we decided to change him.
“Cole probably is the only one that we need to assess a little bit. He already did a huge effort last Saturday. He was not 100 per cent. He wants to be there to help the team. It’s day by day to see how he is. The rest are okay.
“The medical staff didn’t mention to me about surgery until today. I don’t know about the next weeks, but I don’t think so to be honest.”
Now, as per journalist Simon Phillips, there has been a new update on Palmer’s condition, and it doesn’t make for pretty reading.
Cole Palmer suffers "new" injury to groin as Chelsea dealt blow
Writing via his Substack, the reporter claims that Palmer has suffered a “new” injury to the same groin that has been plaguing him non-stop this season, and he now faces several weeks on the sidelines.
The prospect of surgery also isn’t completely ruled out.
“Unfortunately I’ve got bad news today,” Phillips began.
“SPTC Sources heard late last night that Cole Palmer has picked up a further injury to the same groin that he has been struggling with since way before the Club World Cup.
“Sources have heard that Palmer has a new tear in the same groin and we are looking at around 3-6 weeks out. This is as a result of further aggravation to the groin in the Bayern game.
“We have not yet heard anything on surgery but for extreme cases of this injury, surgery is an option. It all depends on what grade of tear Palmer has as to how long he will be out for and whether he will need surgery for it or not.”
Phillips also stated that Chelsea have been managing his groin with painkiller injections before each game, and the forward started having further problems in that area late on in the Bayern game.
Despite this, Maresca started Palmer last Saturday, and it is a decision which the Blues will be ruing.
Sources have apparently made clear that he shouldn’t have participated in Manchester, and at the worst, Palmer could miss some crucial clashes.
Lincoln City (A) – EFL Cup
Brighton (H) – Premier League
Benfica (H) – Champions League
Liverpool (H) – Premier League
Nottingham Forest (A) – Premier League
Ajax (H) – Champions League
Sunderland (H) – Premier League
Tottenham (A) – Premier League
Chelsea will also regret not signing Xavi Simons in the summer window after being hijacked by Tottenham, with Maresca arguably in need of a quality playmaker alternative amid Palmer’s reoccurring struggles.
