Chelsea dealt key injury blow ahead of Liverpool showdown

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Chelsea face a setback ahead of their clash with Liverpool after reportedly suffering a key injury blow.

Liverpool’s strong start to the new Premier League season faces an early test.

The champions have won all five of their opening games and now enter a demanding stretch.

A tricky trip to Crystal Palace comes first, followed by a midweek Champions League visit to Galatasaray.

After that, the Reds will head to Stamford Bridge for a clash that already feels important in the title race.

Chelsea, meanwhile, have had a mixed opening.

They lost their first league game of the campaign at Manchester United and are juggling domestic and European duties.

They recently edged past Lincoln City in the Carabao Cup and also have a Champions League fixture against Benfica before hosting Liverpool.

It is the kind of packed schedule that can quickly expose a squad’s depth.

And now, reports suggest they have a fresh problem that could influence this key meeting.

According to Chelsea reporter Simon Phillips on Substack, the Blues are reportedly set to be without one of their most important players for between three and six weeks.

The issue reportedly stems from their 2-1 Champions League loss to Bayern Munich last week.

In that game, the player in question left the pitch early, which at first seemed to be a tactical switch by head coach Enzo Maresca.

Before Chelsea’s Carabao Cup tie at Lincoln, Maresca admitted there were concerns.

“We need to protect Cole, for sure,” he said.

“Not only Cole, in my personal view, because of the Club World Cup and because we never stop.

We need to manage and protect different players.”

“For sure, Cole is one of them.

Since he joined us, he’s playing every game.”

“The solution with Cole, I don’t know.”

That player is Cole Palmer, Chelsea’s creative spark who scored 18 goals and set up 14 more last season.

Th report read, “Fears around the fitness of Cole Palmer are set to become reality after a NEW injury to his same groin has emerged.”

He missed the midweek win at Lincoln because of a groin problem and now faces weeks on the sidelines.

Palmer’s absence adds to a growing list of Chelsea injuries, with striker Liam Delap out with a hamstring issue and centre-back Levi Colwill recovering from an ACL injury.

For Liverpool, the news is significant.

Facing Chelsea away is always a challenge, but a key opponent missing could tilt a finely balanced fixture in their favour as Arne Slot’s side aim to keep their perfect run alive.

Read more: David Moyes makes Anfield claim after loss

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