Chelsea have confirmed that Cole Palmer will be available to face Arsenal this weekend after recovering from a broken toe, with his manager stating that the forward is fit to start.
Speaking to the media at Cobham, Enzo Maresca said: “Yes, Cole is available for both [to play and to start]. We are looking okay [after Barcelona]. Dario Essugo also took part of the session this morning, which is good news too. Having Cole back is good news and everyone is happy.
“The fans are happy, his team-mates are happy and the most important thing is that Cole is happy [to be back]. Players want to play games, so him being back is a big moment. He can help us a lot. He is arguably our best player and we are happy he is back. Now we have to give him time to be 100 per cent fit. He has done fantastic in the past and no doubt he is going to do very good things for this club in the future.”
Last week, Maresca had ruled Palmer out of multiple fixtures after confirming the player suffered the injury at home. He said at the time that Palmer would be “not available for Saturday for sure, Barcelona for sure or Arsenal for sure”.
Earlier this week, however, the Chelsea head coach revealed that the 23-year-old had already returned to light training. “He’s already on the pitch, he’s already touching the ball, so it’s good,” Maresca said. “The last time I spoke to Cole was Sunday after the session, to ask how he was feeling. It was a good feeling, but I didn’t ask him details about the injury at all.”
When asked whether Palmer could return specifically against Arsenal, Maresca added: “We are here for the Champions League game, and then after that we start to think about Arsenal.”
Palmer has endured a frustrating campaign interrupted by injury. He initially missed weeks with a groin problem earlier in the season before suffering a setback shortly after his return.
When fit, he remains one of Chelsea’s most decisive players, having scored 18 goals and provided 14 assists in 2024/25, with two further goals coming in his limited appearances this season.