Chelsea have been without Cole Palmer for far too long.
The Blues have coped — Enzo Maresca can be delighted by his team’s third-place standing.
But it was still a gut punch to find out that Palmer’s Chelsea return date has been pushed out even further after he sustained a fracture to his toe, ruling him out until at least after the Arsenal game.
The original incident, though, happened during a clash at Old Trafford, before which Palmer was sharing something very interesting with the Chelsea staff.
Cole Palmer was extremely happy with his fitness before Man Utd
Palmer was struggling with injury for large parts of the season, but had been managing it carefully.
He had just returned from the sidelines, scoring against Bayern Munich that week. Before the trip to face Man United, he was apparently very pleased with his physical condition.
Law reveals: “I’m told that apparently and this is interesting because I thought he’s very good in this game apparently after the Bayern Munich game he had told people that he’d felt as good as he had in ages physically that that Bayern Munich game was the first game in ages he’d felt really good physically.
“Whether that just peaked or something, because obviously he kind of broke down against Man United. And at that point it was just look this isn’t this isn’t something to manage anymore that otherwise we’re going to get into serious problems here.”
That’ll be a tough one for Chelsea fans to take. A Palmer at his best is a game-winner, and his presence might have Chelsea in much better standing than the already-impressive third place.
Chelsea are in for a treat when Palmer does return
It’s possible that the pain of losing Palmer hasn’t been felt as it would be if not for the emergence of Estevao Willian in his place.
Chelsea plan for Estevao to follow in Palmer’s path, and the 18-year-old has shown flashes of the same footballing magic his teammate has become so recognised for.
Chelsea fans can’t wait to see Palmer and Estevao in action, having been deprived of that for so long.
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And it really does make the Blues a different proposition entirely. The midfield is purring right now, and while criticism flies at the defensive line from time to time, they aren’t allowing many chances.
When Palmer is inserted back into the centre of the attack, Chelsea can beat any team. Simple as.