England are set to be without Cole Palmer for their four upcoming fixtures (Picture: Getty) Chelsea star Cole Palmer is expected to pull out of England’s squad for the side’s upcoming Nations League matches due to load management after suffering a ‘small injury’. Palmer was named in Thomas Tuchel’s 27-man party for England’s clashes with Spain, the Czech Republic (playing twice) and Croatia on Friday, having been left out of the Three Lions’ World Cup squad in the summer. The 24-year-old attacking midfielder went on to play the full 90 minutes of Chelsea’s 3-0 defeat to Brentford on Friday night – his seventh appearance of the season in all competitions for the Blues. But according to The Athletic, it has been decided that it is best for Palmer to sit out England’s four fixtures over the course of an extended international break. Sign up for In The Mixer, Metro's football newsletter Get exclusive analysis and previews of the biggest games every Friday. Sign up now for free. The Telegraph’s Matt Law claims the Chelsea man has picked up a ‘small injury’. Manchester United duo Kobbie Mainoo and Marcus Rashford could be set to follow suit due to doubts over their fitness. Mainoo managed 80 minutes of the Red Devils’ 1-1 draw with Fulham on Sunday, before being replaced by Mason Mount at Craven Cottage. Rashford and Mainoo could also pull out of the squad (Picture: Reuters) Tuchel unveiled his 27-man squad on Friday (Picture: Getty) Marcus Rashford was also substituted in the closing stages in the capital and Michael Carrick subsequently confirmed that the winger had to be withdrawn due to an unspecified ‘issue’. ‘We had to bring him off as he had a bit of an issue,’ the United head coach told beIN SPORTS. Palmer had hoped to have put his fitness concerns behind him after a deeply frustrating 2025/26 campaign with Chelsea, which meant he started only 24 of the club’s 38 games across the top-flight campaign. This term, a seemingly reinvigorated Palmer has racked up four goals and two assists for Chelsea under new manager Xabi Alonso. Tuchel's initial 27-man England squad Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford (Everton), Jason Steele (Brighton & Hove Albion), James Trafford (Leeds United) Defenders: Trent Alexander-Arnold (Real Madrid), Jarrad Branthwaite (Everton), Trevoh Chalobah (Como), Marc Guéhi (Manchester City), Lewis Hall (Newcastle United), Ezri Konsa (Arsenal), Tino Livramento (Newcastle United), Nico O’Reilly (Manchester City), Jarell Quansah (Bayer Leverkusen) Midfielders: Elliot Anderson (Manchester City), Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid), Myles Lewis-Skelly (Arsenal), Kobbie Mainoo (Manchester United), Cole Palmer (Chelsea), Declan Rice (Arsenal), Alex Scott (AFC Bournemouth) Forwards: Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Leeds United), Eberechi Eze (Arsenal), Anthony Gordon (Barcelona), Harry Kane (Bayern Munich), Rio Ngumoha (Liverpool), Marcus Rashford (Manchester United), Morgan Rogers (Chelsea), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal) Palmer was named England’s Men’s Player of the Year back in 2023/24 and came on to score his country’s only goal in the side’s Euro 2024 final defeat at the hands of Spain. The former Manchester City man has been capped 14 times in total at international level, with his last appearance coming in the Three Lions’ 1-0 loss to Japan in March. ‘They had a good start to the season,’ Tuchel said of his decision to recall both Palmer and Trent Alexander-Arnold. ‘They never did something wrong. We just chose different players. {"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Tuchel explains Alexander-Arnold selection, no White, in his first post-World Cup England squad","contentUrl":"https:\/\/videos.metro.co.uk\/video\/met\/2026\/09\/18\/2868197019731670448\/480x270_MP4_2868197019731670448.mp4","description":"Tuchel says that Ben White would have made the cut if an injury didn't prevent this.","duration":"T5M25S","height":270,"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/i.dailymail.com\/1s\/2026\/09\/18\/14\/111330939-0-image-a-13_1789736
