Why Cole Palmer Isn’t Playing for Chelsea vs. West Ham

Cole Palmer was a surprise scratch from the Chelsea starting lineup on Friday before the Blues kicked-off against West Ham at London Stadium.

The 23-year-old was seen leaving the pitch during the warm-up with Chelsea staff after apparently suffering an injury. He was replaced by Estêvão who looks to have an impact in his first-ever Premier League start.

The severity nor the specificity of the injury were revealed by Chelsea in their announcement. Fans eagerly await more information likely to come at halftime or after the game from Enzo Maresca.

Palmer was later seen on the bench in a jacket preparing to watch his team in a London derby. A big blow to a side that was frustrated last time out by Crystal Palace dropping two points at Stamford Bridge.

Lucas Paquetá added insult to injury early with a screamer to open the scoring for West Ham.

The former Manchester City player missed just one Premier League game last term, an away loss to Arsenal on Mar. 16 with a hamstring injury. He started 36 of the other 37 games in 2024–25 coming off the bench once as Chelsea’s talismanic player.

This is a developing story