Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino may well be without key player Cole Palmer tonight as he prepares his Blues side to take on Arsenal in the Premier League.
Chelsea are chasing a Europa League spot and a win against Arsenal tonight in their game in hand will really put them into a fine position to achieve that goal. But Arsenal will of course be no push over and they are fighting to win the league title so will be doing all they can to take all three points at home tonight.
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Chelsea could really rain on their parade though and have a big chance to do so, but if they do it, they will probably have to do it without Cole Palmer.
The attacker is looking like he could miss the game tonight through illness having not trained yesterday. Pochettino confirmed yesterday that Palmer is now a major doubt to even make the squad.
Chelsea without Palmer is something that strikes fear amongst the Blues fanbase, because he has become the talisman, the main, guy, and the top source of goals and assists for the club.
But manager Pochettino insists this is a chance for his players to stand up and show that they are not Cole Palmer Football Club and this is in fact, Chelsea Football Club! He says they have a chance to prove a point.
In embargoed quotes from yesterday’s pre-match press conference for Arsenal, Pochettino said: “It is a good challenge if [Cole] Palmer is not available tomorrow. If I were [his teammates], I would be motivated to go there tomorrow and show that this is Chelsea Football Club, not Cole Palmer Football Club.”
And he’s right here. Chelsea’s reliance on Palmer this season has been clear to see, whether that has been intentional or not. They need to show that they can still perform without him and more importantly, still find goals without him.
