Cole Palmer has endured a frustrating start to the season as he deals with an ongoing groin injury.
The Chelsea midfielder was sidelined for a month after playing in the Premier League opener against Crystal Palace, with last Saturday's 2-1 defeat by Manchester United only his third start of the campaign in all competitions.
But Palmer lasted just 20 minutes at Old Trafford and was absent for Tuesday's Carabao Cup third-round victory at Lincoln City.
Is Chelsea's Cole Palmer available this weekend?
Palmer played the full 90 minutes of Chelsea's stalemate with Palace on the opening weekend but missed the wins against West Ham and Fulham.
He was also sidelined for England's World Cup qualifiers against Andorra and Serbia this month but made his return in Chelsea's 2-2 draw at Brentford on September 13, scoring just five minutes after coming on as a second-half substitute.
The 23-year-old then started against Bayern Munich in the Champions League four days later, scoring his side's goal in a 3-1 defeat, before his brief appearance at Old Trafford.
It showed Palmer is still managing the groin issue and boss Enzo Maresca revealed this week that the club's medical staff had discussed surgery.
Speaking to Metro, the Italian said: "It's more day by day, week by week, game by game to see how it is and decide what we do."
On the possibility of Palmer needing an operation, Maresca added: "I don't know if in the next days or the next weeks, but I don't think so, to be honest."
It appears unlikely that Palmer will be fit for Saturday's clash with Brighton at Stamford Bridge, where Chelsea will hope to return to winning ways after picking up one point from their past two games.
The game against the Seagulls, who sit 14th, kicks off at 3pm.
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