Cole Palmer spotted for first time as Enzo Maresca welcomes boost before Chelsea training resumes

Premier League high-flyers Chelsea are at the midpoint of the November international break and provided all goes well, Enzo Maresca is set to have a number of stars return to training healthy in the coming week.

The Blues went into the season's third pause harbouring several injury doubts, though they also held hope that the majority of these will turn out to be minor issues and will not impact the team's rise up the Premier League table.

As things stand Chelsea sit third. This marks a super start to life under Maresca, who after taking charge, once furore over Mauricio Pochettino's exit calmed down, has started to get the best out of the club's multi-million pound squad.

There is no reason why they shouldn't look ahead to second-placed team Manchester City as they are severely struggling with injuries on a four-game losing streak. That gap is four points, and would be great mentality to possess rather than looking over their shoulders to Arsenal in fourth, Aston Villa and Tottenham Hotspur further down the table, or any other top-flight team that may fancy themselves in a bid for European qualification with this term.

Next up Maresca faces a reunion with former club Leicester City, as he returns to the King Power Stadium that holds some personal weight to it on top of the Premier League's usual pressures.

With all of that being said, football.london has rounded up the latest Chelsea news and headlines looking ahead to the fixture.

Palmer takes in League One action

Even when given a day off from the sport by Chelsea, Cole Palmer can't get enough football. On Saturday the injured talisman was seen in the crowd at Stockport County's Edgeley Park as his local team defeated Wrexham in third-tier action.

The midfielder reported for England at St. George's Park last Monday but was released from his duties to get over his recent knee injury. Now in his first public outing since, The Daily Mail have shown pictures of the 22-year-old wearing a black jacket, black hoodie and mask to cover his face at the ground of the Stockport team he grew up around a 10 minutes' drive from.

Palmer was treated to a tight battle between two clubs fighting around the League One play-off places. Louie Barry scored the only goal as the hosts defeated their Welsh visitors, who of course are closely followed globally nowadays after back-to-back promotions under the Hollywood ownership of Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney.

football.london says: It is nice to see Palmer enjoying his football even when he is not playing. He is clearly a decent lad and it helps that he knows how to find the back of the net with such ease!

As he seems to be out and about, using that knee of his, hopefully that means he is winning his injury battle whilst missing England fixtures against Greece and Republic of Ireland, so can return to training when it resumes in the coming days.

Neto making an early return

Players being released early from international duty is rarely a good sign, though for Chelsea on this occasion they can stay smiling. As football.london reported on Saturday, Pedro Neto has been afforded some extra days' rest instead of playing for his country.

The £54m summer signing bagged himself his second Portugal goal as they swept Poland aside 5-1 in UEFA Nations League action on Friday, meaning they will win their League A group and advance to the finals next summer.

As little rides on the final fixture against Croatia, the Blues winger is just one of several regular stars who have earned their release from the squad. He is therefore due to have some extra rest days before joining back up with Maresca's men to train for the Leicester meeting.

football.london says: Hopefully the most can be made of this kind gesture, as it aids Maresca not only with the fitness of an injury prone player like Neto but his other stars too.

It might be the difference in rushing Jadon Sancho back following his latest knock, or overplaying someone who is bound to feature for the entirety of the break like Noni Madueke. Heading into an even greater challenge of game management during the festive period, the Blues will need all the manpower they can muster to maintain their early-season form.