Chelsea dealt major setback as Cole Palmer limps off against Manchester United

Chelsea’s 2-1 defeat to Manchester United on Saturday was made worse by the loss of Cole Palmer, who was forced off after just 20 minutes with a groin injury.

Head coach Enzo Maresca confirmed after the match that the 23-year-old has been battling the problem since pre-season, with the issue also ruling him out of England’s World Cup qualifiers earlier this month.

Palmer had made his return last week, scoring off the bench against Brentford, and was handed consecutive starts against Bayern Munich and United. However, he was replaced by Andrey Santos midway through the first half at Old Trafford.

“He was not 100 per cent fit,” Maresca admitted. “He made a huge effort to play, but after 20 minutes he felt something again, so we decided to take him off.”

The latest setback raises fresh concerns over Palmer’s fitness with a busy run of fixtures ahead.