Chelsea have been handed a major boost ahead of their Premier League showdown with Arsenal, as manager Enzo Maresca confirmed on Friday that Cole Palmer is fit and available for selection. The Blues head into the top-of-the-table clash looking to trim the six-point gap separating them from their London rivals.

Palmer, 23, had been sidelined after fracturing his toe when he accidentally stubbed it on a door during the night—an untimely setback on top of the groin injury that had already disrupted his season.

“He is available to start and to play,” Maresca told reporters. “Everyone is happy—the teammates are happy, we are all happy—and most importantly Cole is happy, because a footballer wants to play games and train every day.”

The England midfielder has featured just four times in all competitions for Chelsea this season, scoring twice. Since arriving from Manchester City in 2023, he has amassed an impressive 45 goals and 29 assists in 101 appearances for the club.

“He is our best player; we are happy he is back,” Maresca added. “We need to give him time to reach 100% fitness. He has been fantastic in the past, and there’s no doubt he’ll continue to be very important for this club.”

Maresca stays cautious on title talk

Chelsea sit second in the table with 23 points from 12 matches, but Maresca is not getting carried away despite the strong position.

At a similar stage last season, the Italian insisted Chelsea were not in the title race, and they ultimately finished fourth.

“It’s still too early, whether we win or not against Arsenal,” he said. “It’s the end of November—there are five or six months to go. February and March are more important; that’s when you can really judge whether you’re capable of achieving something significant.

“It’s definitely different from a year ago. We’ve spent another year together and gone through moments we can learn from. But it’s still very early. The important thing is to still be where we are now when we reach March or April—then we’ll see.”