Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca has confirmed that Cole Palmer will miss upcoming meetings with Burnley, Barcelona and Arsenal having suffered a toe injury.
Palmer has been restricted to just three league appearances this season after pulling up wih a groin injury in the first half of Chelsea’s eventual 2-1 loss at Manchester United back in September.
The Blues star had been expected to return to action for Saturday’s game at Burnley, but he’ll face another spell on the sidelines.
'He had an accident at home'
"Unfortunately, he had an accident at home where he hit his toe but it is nothing important - but he won't be back in the next week," Maresca said ahead of the weekend’s trip to Turf Moor.
Palmer stubbed the little toe of his left foot on a door, and when asked when the 23-year-old could return, Maresca replied: "We don't know. [His toe] It's fractured. The only thing we know: he is not available for this week and next week."
"The last time I saw him was [Thursday] morning and he was without socks, without flip-flops, without nothing. He wasn't limping too much,” Maresca continued.
"He was walking OK but the problem is it is the small toe. The contact with the boot can be a bit painful."
'I feel much better with Cole on the pitch'
Even in Palmer’s absence, Chelsea have been performing well as they sit third in the Premier League, and can close the gap on league leaders Arsenal to three points with a win at Burnley on Saturday.
However, Maresca has confirmed that he “feels much better” when his talisman does play, even as the Blues shine without Palmer.
"The team prefer it when Cole is playing, I feel much better with Cole on the pitch but when he is not we need to find solutions,” the Italian said
"The team is doing fantastic, really well. For any manager, it's nice when you miss a player but the team still plays in the way you want it to."
After meetings with Burnley, Barcelona and Arsenal to round off November, Chelsea kick off December with games against Leeds, Bournemouth and Atalanta.
