Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca has revealed that Cole Palmer has suffered a new injury setback after fracturing a toe at home. The playmaker had been close to returning from a long-term groin problem but has now been ruled out of the Blues' next three matches, according to his manager.
Ahead of the journey to Burnley on the weekend, Maresca stated: "He is probably not available for tomorrow, for sure, Barcelona, for sure, Arsenal, for sure. Unfortunately he had an accident at home with his toe. But it's nothing important. For sure he is not back next week."
When questioned further about Palmer's latest setback, Maresca added: "We don't know. It's fractured. The only thing we know is he is not available for this week and next week.
"The last time I saw him was yesterday morning and he was without socks, without flip-flops, without nothing.
"I don't know how he is today. It was in the changing room. He wasn't limping, he seemed okay, but it's his small toe [in his left foot], so it can be painful."
It's believed that Palmer stubbed his toe on a door at his Surrey residence, causing a fracture. He has made just four appearances for the Blues this season so far.
Three of those appearances have been in the Premier League where the attacking midfielder has played just 145 minutes of action in total.
His last outing was in the defeat at Manchester United in September, when he was forced off after just 21 minutes.
Chelsea had been hopeful that he would be back in action before the end of this month, having missed 16 matches this season across all competitions.
On a brighter note, Pedro Neto, Enzo Fernandez and Benoit Badiashile will all be fit for the journey to Burnley.
Neto had to pull out of the Portugal squad that was humiliated by the Republic of Ireland during the international break.
After scoring in Chelsea's big win over Wolves, he developed a groin problem and subsequently requested Maresca to substitute him, but has since recovered.
Midfield maestro Fernandez also withdrew from the Argentina squad due to knee discomfort as he continues to grapple with a painful bone edema, which is essentially a fluid build-up causing stiffness.
However, he has been pictured in training at Cobham in recent days, after missing Argentina's friendly win over Angola.