Chelsea will be without Cole Palmer for around six weeks as Enzo Maresca conceded he was mistaken about the severity of the playmaker's injury.

Palmer sustained a groin issue in August but returned to action last month to score for the Blues against Brentford in the Premier League and Bayern Munich in Europe.

However, the England international subsequently aggravated the issue in a defeat to Manchester United at Old Trafford, and has been absent since then.

Maresca had hoped to have Palmer back in the fold before the November international window, but ahead of Chelsea's clash with Nottingham Forest, the Italian confirmed the 23-year-old would be out for over a month.

"I was wrong," Maresca said of Palmer.

"Unfortunately, he needs to be out for six more weeks. This is the update."

Maresca added that Palmer will not need surgery, but stressed that Chelsea will move forward with caution.

He said: "The medical staff are not magicians. You need six weeks, and we hope six weeks will be enough. A problem we need to see step by step, week by week.

"He looks very good. Relaxed. Trying to recover."

Palmer has only missed seven Premier League games since joining Chelsea from Manchester City in 2023.

Chelsea have lost three of those matches, while their average goals scored drops from 1.9 with him in the team, to 1.7 when he is absent.

"To replace Cole, it is difficult," Maresca said. "Cole is a very important player for us. One of the best players in Premier League, so he is always difficult to replace.

"With what we have, it depends on game plan. Against Liverpool, it was [Malo] Gusto. Against Benfica, it was Enzo [Fernandez].

"We have to find another player with different qualities because we don't have a player like Cole – he is unique."