Why Cole Palmer Isn’t Playing for Chelsea vs. Cardiff

Wholesale changes are on the cards for their Carabao Cup quarterfinal in Wales.

Cole Palmer will be absent for Chelsea’s Carabao Cup quarter-final. / Grzegorz Wajda/SOPA Images/LightRocket/Getty Images

There is simply no let up in Chelsea’s frenetic winter schedule as the Blues prepare to face Cardiff City in the Carabao Cup quarterfinal on Tuesday night.

Chelsea journey to Wales looking to cement their place in the semi-final of the Carabao Cup for the first time under Enzo Maresca, with the expectation being that they will sweep aside their League One opponents with little fuss.

The two teams haven’t done battle since Cardiff were a Premier League side during the 2018–19 season, but the Bluebirds have since slumped to the third tier and will need a miraculous effort if they’re to overcome Chelsea for the first time since 1986.

The Blues will be keen not to exert too much energy in the Welsh capital, but their lives will be made more challenging by the absence of Cole Palmer. Their talisman, who scored at the weekend in victory over Everton, has seldom featured this season due to injuries and is missing for quarterfinal showdown.

Sign Up to Get Informed With SI FC. dark. FREE NEWSLETTER. New SI FC Newsletter Global Embed

---

Why Is Cole Palmer Not Playing for Chelsea vs. Cardiff?

Palmer has battled a groin injury this season. / Sebastian Frej/MB Media/Getty Images

Palmer has already been absent for 16 Chelsea matches through injury this season. A groin issue ruled him out for over two months of the campaign in total and a freak toe injury on his return sidelined him for another week.

While Palmer is back to full match fitness having featured in the past three games, Maresca is keen to protect the England international from suffering any further setbacks. The Chelsea boss has revealed he will be omitted against Cardiff on Tuesday to ensure he’s not overloaded.

“I’ve already said many times in plenty of press conferences that we have a number of players that need to be protected,” Maresca told the media before the Cardiff clash. “The target is to protect them and manage them. Cole is one of the players who deserves to be protected right now.

“In this moment, he’s not available to play two games in three days. So he won’t be available for tomorrow’s game, but should be fine for the weekend.

“We’re going to make some changes. We’ll see how many, but for sure we have players that in the last 12, 13 days, they’ve played five games. So they need to probably recover energy.”

Palmer, as Maresca revealed, should be fit enough to feature on Saturday lunchtime when Chelsea visit Newcastle United in the Premier League. The Blues are five points adrift of third-placed Aston Villa, but will secure their place in the top four at Christmas with a win at St James’ Park.

---

Who Will Replace Cole Palmer vs. Cardiff?

Facundo Buonanotte appears likely to start. / Harry Murphy/Getty Images

Maresca will likely make wholesale changes to the team that beat Everton on Saturday, with an entirely new XI not out of the question. Fortunately, he has a wealth of options to choose from across his squad.

While it’s possible that the likes of João Pedro or Enzo Fernández fill in for Palmer in an attacking midfield role, it appears more probable that loanee Facundo Buonanotte will operate as Chelsea’s No. 10.

The Argentine has made just six appearances for Chelsea since making the switch from Brighton & Hove Albion, but he’s started both of the club’s Carabao Cup matches, even scoring the winner against Lincoln City in the third round.

---

READ THE LATEST SOCCER NEWS, TRANSFER RUMORS AND MATCH REACTION

feed