Palmer, Caicedo & João Pedro: Latest Cheslea injury news and return dates ahead of Lincoln & Brighton matches

Chelsea play twice this week, with a Premier League showdown with Brighton & Hove Albion following hot on the heels of an EFL Cup third round tie with League One side Lincoln City on Tuesday evening – but the Blues head into their upcoming matches with several injury worries.

The biggest concern will be the fitness of Cole Palmer, who was forced from the field just 20 minutes into Sunday’s defeat to Manchester United following an apparent recurrence of a groin injury that had already prevented him from starting three games. Moisés Caicedo and João Pedro, meanwhile, are also carrying lingering injuries.

Palmer is one of eight players who could miss time for Chelsea this week, along with goalkeeper Robert Sánchez who serves a one-match suspension after being sent off at Old Trafford and winger Mykhailo Mudryk, who is suspended due to alleged doping violations. We’ve got all the latest updates on Cheslea’s injured players below, along with their likely return dates when available.

Is Cole Palmer injured for Chelsea?

Palmer came into the season with a groin injury which has already kept him out of two Premier League matches and restricted him to a substitute appearance in a third – and it now appears that the issue has flared up again, after he was taken off in the first half against Manchester United.

Head coach Enzo Maresca told reporters after the game that Chelsea “need to assess” Palmer and admitted that “he was not 100%” going into the game. Maresca added that “we await day by day to see how he is” and told reporters that he didn’t believe that surgery would be necessary to correct what has become a worryingly persistent problem.

While the attacking midfielder has not been ruled out for the match against Lincoln, Maresca also suggested that the club “need to protect” their star playmaker, suggesting that it is very unlikely that Palmer is risked in midweek. His status for Saturday’s fixture against Brighton remains uncertain.

Maresca has also admitted that two more players are managing minor issues – forward João Pedro and midfielder Caicedo. Maresca hinted that Caicedo, in particular, could be rested against Lincoln. The exact nature of their injuries has not been disclosed.

Will Roméo Lavia be fit to play this week?

One player who could return in the near future is Belgian midfielder Roméo Lavia, who has struggled with fitness problems since signing for the club and has yet to play this season due to an unspecified injury sustained during pre-season.

The 21-year-old has now returned to training and Maresca told the press prior to the Manchester United game that he would “be available soon” along with centre-back Benoît Badiashile, another player yet to feature this campaign due to an undisclosed fitness problem. Both have some chance of being involved this week.

READ MORE: The Wonderkid Power Rankings - the Top 10 best young players in the Premier League right now

Three players who won’t return any time soon are Levi Colwill, Liam Delap and Dário Essugo. Colwill will miss most or all of the season after rupturing his ACL, Delap is out until late November with a torn hamstring, and Essugo is out until January after undergoing surgery on a thigh injury sustained while training with Portugal’s Under-21 team.