Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca has revealed fresh details about the injury situation of star man Cole Palmer.
The 23-year-old has been dealing with an on-going groin issue so far this season, which has limited his time on the pitch for The Blues.
Palmer first picked up the injury while warming up ahead of Chelsea's 5-1 win away at West Ham United last month.
This caused him to miss the game against The Hammers and his side's West London derby victory over Fulham a week later.
Palmer made his return away in Chelsea's 2-2 draw at Brentford a fortnight ago, coming off the bench to score his first goal of the season. He then scored in a 3-1 loss at Bayern Munich just days later.
However, the Englishman's groin troubled again in Chelsea's 2-1 defeat at Manchester United last weekend.
Palmer headed straight for the dressing room at Old Trafford after having to be substituted just 21 minutes into the Premier League contest due to a recurrence of the injury.
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Maresca addresses Palmer's injury status
Ahead of Chelsea's league clash with Brighton at Stamford Bridge on Saturday (September 27), Maresca has revealed what the club are doing to deal with Palmer's persistent groin issue and how long the player will be sidelined for.
"We decided to protect a little bit Cole. In terms of not letting his injury getting worse," the Chelsea boss said in his pre-match news conference.
"We decided to rest him for two-three weeks until the international break to see if with that rest, he can recover 100% and to be fit after the international break," Maresca added.
In addition to being absent for the clash with Brighton, Palmer will now miss upcoming home games against Benfica and Liverpool.
He is also set to miss England's friendly with Wales and World Cup qualifier against Latvia in the upcoming international break.
Based on Maresca's comments, Chelsea will hope to have the player back for the team's trip to Nottingham Forest on October 18.
The Chelsea boss did share some good news about Palmer's current situation, mentioning that the injury should not require any surgery.
"I don't think he needs surgery but it is just to manage the pain in his groin. We have decided to be a little bit conservative with him," Maresca exlained.
Chelsea have proved they can cope without their star man already this season and will now need to do so again.
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