Chelsea dealt Moises Caicedo injury worry after Cole Palmer update

Enzo Maresca appears to have been handed a potentially significant Chelsea injury concern with one of his star players withdrawing from an international fixture due to physical discomfort. The Blues have been dealt a devastating blow regarding injuries so far this campaign with Levi Colwill's serious knee problem followed by Cole Palmer and Liam Delap suffering muscular issues.

The latter sustained his hamstring during the 2-0 victory over Fulham whilst Palmer failed to feature after withdrawing from the West Ham clash the previous weekend.

Maresca has offered updates on both in recent weeks with neither sounding particularly encouraging. "Liam's injury doesn't look good in terms of, he was full speed, hamstring, so that required, like always, weeks," he explained.

"The (Crystal) Palace game, he (Palmer) was not 100 per cent," the Chelsea manager disclosed following the triumph against West Ham "But he is trying to make a big effort for the club, for the team, for the fans. Tonight again he tried again, but it was not very good."

During his Fulham pre-match press conference six days later, after ruling him out, Maresca continued: "Cole, we need to see day by day."

Maresca will be eager to have Palmer back available shortly particularly before their Champions League campaign commences with a journey to Bayern Munich later this month. The 23-year-old has been absent for the previous two matches but suggested he is close to returning via Instagram.

The Italian manager also mentioned Moises Caicedo when discussing the numerous injury problems Chelsea faced after participating in and winning the Club World Cup over the summer.

"Moi today (Thursday) only had his first training session since the West Ham game," he stated prior to the victory over Fulham. Despite this, Caicedo has still played every minute of competitive football since the last-16 stage of that tournament, but this streak ended in the early hours of Friday morning as he was absent for Ecuador's World Cup qualifier against Paraguay.

Ecuadorian journalist Maria Jose Flores reported that this was always the plan, with Caicedo never intended to play in the match due to physical discomfort. It is anticipated that he will return against Argentina on Tuesday, 9 September.

This news could be a mixed blessing for Chelsea. The fact that he will be fit to return in just a few days is positive, but the prospect of him playing in a crucial match against the reigning world champions is concerning.