January moves loom: £86m duo look set to never play for Chelsea again
Just a matter of weeks ago it looked like Chelsea were in the title race but things have rather unravelled for Enzo Maresca and Co in recent weeks.
The Blues did pick up a point against Arsenal with ten men but results since then have been bleak, losing 3-1 to Leeds United and drawing 0-0 with Bournemouth.
Cole Palmer’s return to fitness has been timely, but according to the manager, he’s still not up to full speed just yet.
The latest Chelsea injury news
Palmer returned from the bench against Bournemouth at the weekend but in a fresh blow to Maresca and Co they have decided that the attacking midfielder will not travel with the squad for the Champions League trip to Atalanta.
That said, no fresh injury has been sustained. The manager has confirmed the forward is simply being rested as part of his recovery.
Palmer had missed a period courtesy of a groin injury and then had to spend an extra week out after breaking a toe at home.
That said, he is now slowly working himself back. Maresca said: “Cole is in part of his process in this moment. He’s not available, he can’t play two games in a row in three days. So we planned that, and it’s just a way to protect him.”
As far as Liam Delap is concerned, the news isn’t ideal there. The striker injured his shoulder against the Cherries and will now miss a period of time.
Commenting on the striker’s situation, the Chelsea boss stated: “Liam, fortunately, there is not any fracture, so that is good news. In terms of how long he will be out, we are not sure at this stage to be honest.”
What Delap's injury means for Chelsea
Well, it certainly means that Joao Pedro is likely to play a lot of minutes over the festive period and there could well be a rare slice of minutes for Marc Guiu who has barely kicked a ball this season after being recalled from his early-season loan spell with Sunderland.
That said, it’s unlikely we’ll see a recall for a certain Raheem Sterling who remains out in the cold alongside centre-back Axel Disasi.
A January exit looms for both players and it would be a surprise if we saw either in a Chelsea shirt again.
Maresca said in his press conference: “In terms of Raheem, once again it’s the same thing I said about Axel, they are Chelsea players. Now also we are in December, January is coming, so anything can happen, obviously.”
Sterling signed at Stamford Bridge in a deal worth £47.5m back in the summer of 2022 but has not lived up to expectations, scoring just 19 goals in 81 outings. A season-long loan spell with Arsenal in 2024/25 failed to get his career back on track either.
As for Disasi, he had a loan spell with Aston Villa in the back end of last campaign but has not been seen in Chelsea blue this season. He once cost the club a whopping £38.5m but there is seemingly no way back for him.
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1 ByJack Salveson Holmes 3 days ago