Chelsea have been given a significant boost ahead of their London derby against Tottenham with Cole Palmer among a trio of injury returnees.
Enzo Maresca confirmed that the England international is fit to feature at Stamford Bridge on Thursday along with Nicolas Jackson and Noni Madueke.
Palmer missed the Premier League defeat to Arsenal before withdrawing from Thomas Tuchel’s first squad during the international break, raising fears of a lay-off with a muscular problem.
But those frets were allayed when the 22-year-old was able to train late last week and he appears in line to start against Spurs as he attempts to put a lean patch of form behind him.
Jackson and Madueke, meanwhile, have been out for a longer period of time and return in a timely manner with the chase for Champions League places hotting up.
"Cole is back, he's okay." manager Maresca revealed. "He's better. Noni is better. Nico is better. They are all good."
Chelsea remain fourth despite a tricky period of three defeats in five games stalling their momentum, with all of Manchester City, Newcastle and Brighton in close attention behind, plus Fulham, Aston Villa and Bournemouth lurking beyond.
Maresca’s side had appeared possible title contenders at times in the first half of the campaign with Palmer and Jackson particularly impressive, with a number of injuries creating issues in an otherwise promising first season under the Italian manager.
“We've said many times, it is a game for players and when they are not there, you struggle,” Maresca said.
"This has happened with us this season, where we had five or six unbelievable months and then had six or seven injuries in a row and we lost something. Now it is good to finish with all of them.
"Since day one, [the players] are giving everything. The attitude has always been top, every day, and even in the last week because they know how important it is from now on. Every game becomes important. We have nine games to go and hopefully we can finish well.
