Palmer unfit for the match vs. Manchester United, reveals Maresca

Maresca Reveals Cole Palmer’s Physical Condition in Defeat Against Manchester United

Coach Enzo Maresca has confirmed that Cole Palmer was not fully fit before starting in Saturday’s defeat to Manchester United. Despite this, Maresca praised the English striker’s effort to be available at Old Trafford. Palmer was substituted 20 minutes into the game, with Chelsea already at a numerical disadvantage after Robert Sánchez’s red card and a goal conceded following Bruno Fernandes’ goal. The Ruben Amorim team finally won 2-1, and Maresca confirmed after the match that he had taken a risk with Palmer’s physical condition.

Cole, trained this morning, had a test this morning to play this match. He wasn’t 100%. He made a fantastic effort to play this match, but he wasn’t 100%.

Enzo Maresca

Palmer went straight to the tunnel after being substituted and returned before the end of the first half with an ice pack on the top of his thigh. The 23-year-old player has just returned from a groin injury. His start in the 3-1 defeat to Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Wednesday was his first since the opening weekend of the season. “It’s a problem that’s been going on for a long time, it’s the groin again,” said Maresca. “He did a test this morning. He wanted to play this match to be close to the team, so the effort has been enormous on his part. But then, after 20 minutes, he started to feel something, so we decided to substitute him.”