Palmer Set to Return: Chelsea Star Poised for First Start in Months Against Bournemouth
Chelsea are looking for a swift bounce-back from their midweek loss at Elland Road as they face Bournemouth in Premier League action this Saturday afternoon.
Reliability has been the primary issue for this Chelsea squad heading into the 2025–26 season, and the Blues, after shining against Barcelona and looking solid in their stalemate with Arsenal, demonstrated under the floodlights in West Yorkshire exactly why they're not yet prepared to challenge the Gunners for the championship.
A 3–1 loss to Leeds United has suddenly put them nine points behind at the summit, with a journey to the Vitality Stadium coming next.
Enzo Maresca was compelled to shuffle his starting lineup during the week, with Chelsea's backup players unable to deliver the required performance. Here's how they might set up against Bournemouth this Saturday.
Chelsea Predicted Lineup vs. Bournemouth (4-2-3-1)
GK: Robert Sánchez—The Spanish keeper will be relieved not to have Tosin Adarabioyo positioned ahead of him this weekend, and it could be some time before we witness the ex-Fulham defender back in action following his Wednesday display.
RB: Josh Acheampong—Maresca regretted his choice to rely on Tosin instead of the academy product at Leeds. Acheampong's first-team appearances have typically been in central positions, but his youth development occurred on the right flank.
CB: Wesley Fofana—Fofana's playing time needs careful monitoring, and he wasn't included in Wednesday's matchday squad. Nevertheless, there appears to be no fitness concern, so the French defender should return to the lineup.
CB: Trevoh Chalobah—The English center-back has become a consistent starter this campaign, and he's expected to retain his place on the south coast.
LB: Marc Cucurella—Maresca has limited options at left-back, so the reliable Cucurella will maintain his position in the team against the Cherries. He may face off against Antoine Semenyo.
CM: Reece James—James is also receiving careful management, and he only appeared as a substitute midweek after excelling against Arsenal.
CM: Andrey Santos—Maresca might choose additional stability alongside his skipper in the middle of the park, with Enzo Fernández proving much more influential in advanced positions rather than when deployed in a deeper capacity.
RW: Pedro Neto—Neto made an instant impression at Elland Road, though his early second-half strike couldn't inspire the away team. Even so, the Portuguese wide player has been electric this season.
AM: Cole Palmer—Palmer's 30-minute return on Wednesday certainly didn't unfold as hoped, but there's no questioning the importance of the creative midfielder's comeback. He should receive around an hour of action on Saturday.
LW: Alejandro Garnacho—There's presently no clear frontrunner on the left wing, but Garnacho has offered more attacking threat than Jamie Gittens in recent matches.
ST: João Pedro—Liam Delap isn't making the grade, so Maresca will probably return to deploying Pedro as the striker. The Brazilian has endured a somewhat barren spell in front of goal since finding the net in the convincing victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers nearly a month ago.
