During his pregame press conference on Friday, Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca revealed some encouraging injury news, but he also confirmed that star player Cole Palmer will not play for his team until after the international break. Maresca is trying to keep the Blues from losing to the Seagulls for the third time in a row when they play Brighton this weekend. When the south coast team played in the Premier League in February, they won 3-0 at the AMEX Stadium after winning the FA Cup 2-1 the day before.
Maresca will be without Palmer and also confirmed that defenders Tosin Adarabioyo and Wesley Fofana would miss out. Levi Colwill and Liam Delap remain long term absentees. However, Chelsea could welcome back Romeo Lavia this weekend. The midfielder, who joined the club from Southampton on a £58 million deal in August 2023, has endured an injury ridden start to life in London.