England’s first extended international window under FIFA’s revised calendar has lost one of Chelsea’s sharpest attacking figures before it begins. Cole Palmer will miss the Nations League programme with a muscle injury, ending a brief return to Thomas Tuchel’s England plans after his earlier exclusion from this year’s World Cup squad.
The 24-year-old completed Chelsea’s 90 minutes in Friday’s defeat to Brentford, having been brought back into the national set-up for fixtures against Spain, the Czech Republic and Croatia. His recall followed an emphatic response to the World Cup disappointment: Palmer has produced four goals and two assists across seven Chelsea appearances this season as he worked back towards his strongest form in west London.
England open their Nations League campaign at Wembley against Spain on Saturday before travelling east to Prague, where the Czech Republic await on 29 September. Tuchel’s side then head to Rijeka to face Croatia on 3 October, followed by another meeting with the Czechs at Wembley three nights later.
The sequence marks the first three-week international gathering under FIFA’s altered fixture system, which has combined the traditional September and October breaks into one longer autumn window. Palmer’s absence removes a player who had forced his way back into contention just as England’s new continental itinerary was taking shape.
