Enzo Maresca has confirmed that Cole Palmer is fit to play against Tottenham on Thursday. Attackers Nicolas Jackson and Noni Madueke are also ready to return.
Chelsea have been without Jackson and Madueke for almost two months whilst Palmer missed the defeat at Arsenal prior to the international break. Maresca's side host Tottenham at Stamford Bridge in the Premier League as they look to get a crucial win in the race for a top five finish.
Speaking ahead of the match, Maresca told reporters at Cobham on Wednesday that "Cole is back, he's okay." Maresca added: "He's better. Noni is better. Nico is better. They are all good."
The trio being available will be a major boost for Chelsea as they look to finish the season strongly. Despite being fourth heading into the midweek round of fixtures, Chelsea have struggled for form since the turn of the year.
Their only wins to come after beating Brentford in mid-December have been against bottom-half sides West Ham, Wolves, Southampton, and Leicester. Chelsea face a much tougher final nine matches.
That run starts on Thursday as Tottenham visit SW6. Ange Postecoglou's side are in even more strife as they look set to be outside the top 10.
Chelsea know that anything but a victory over Spurs will open the door for Brighton, Aston Villa, Newcastle United, Manchester City, and even Bournemouth in 10th.
By the time Chelsea kick off on Thursday they could be seventh with the gap to Bournemouth only being two points. A place in the top five is now almost certain to secure Champions League football.
Explaining the importance of having key players back at this time, Maresca said: "Very good. We've said many times, it is a game for players and when they are not there, you struggle. This has happened with us this season. Now it is good to finish with all of them."
Unfortunately for Chelsea and Maresca, Romeo Lavia will not be available. “He was doing better in terms of progress but unfortunately one or two days ago he had a small problem, so we will see in the next hours.”
Lavia only just returned to the Chelsea side after another extended spell on the sidelines. Reece James is ready to go, though, and will continue his run of maintaining fitness throughout 2025. "We still need to manage Reece," the coach admitted.
"The reason why is because you know his history probably better than me. You need to be careful with him in this moment. We want him fit until the end so we will manage him until the end and then we will see in the future."
Maresca continued: "Reece James in another team is very, very young. In our team, probably a bit old but he is still very, very young. He's 25 or 26, a top age."
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Chelsea flag prior the UEFA Champions League Quarter Final Leg One match between Chelsea FC and Real Madrid at Stamford Bridge. (Photo by Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
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