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Palmer had to sit on the bench in a life jacket. |
The Blues star was initially lined up on the right wing, but was forced off the pitch after a few minutes of warming up and headed straight down the tunnel. Manager Enzo Maresca later told Sky Sports that Palmer “felt something was wrong” during the warm-up, and the coaching staff did not want to risk it.
This is a necessary precaution, because Palmer is an important pillar of Chelsea, in the context of Levi Colwill having to take a long-term leave due to an anterior cruciate ligament injury. The image of the England international wearing a life jacket sitting quietly on the bench, while his teammates walked onto the field, made many Chelsea fans worried.
Brazilian youngster Estevao was picked to replace Palmer in the starting line-up, opening up a spot on the bench for third-choice goalkeeper Gaga Slonina (number 44).
Palmer's absence is particularly regrettable as he has been a regular against West Ham: scoring in the 5-0 win in 2023/24, netting in the 3-0 win last season and providing an assist in the 2-1 win at Stamford Bridge.
In addition to being stunned by the loss of their number one star, Chelsea were quickly shocked once again when Lucas Paqueta scored a powerful shot from distance to open the scoring for West Ham. However, Maresca's team quickly regained their composure to lead 3-1 in the first half.
In the second half, Chelsea continued to dominate to close out a resounding 5-1 victory. Most of the home crowd left the stadium before the end of the match, while Maresca's team had a perfect afternoon despite the loss of Palmer's injury.
Source: https://znews.vn/hlv-maresca-tiet-lo-ly-do-palmer-phai-ngoi-ghe-du-bi-post1579240.html
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