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Cole Palmer received two yellow cards(Image: Steve Bardens - AMA, Getty Images)
Chelsea will be without Cole Palmer when they make the trip to Anfield to face Liverpool. The Blues' star picked up a red card in Chelsea's defeat to Tottenham in the Premier League.
Palmer, 24, earned the first sending-off of his career after picking up two yellow cards against Spurs. As a result, he will serve a one-match ban and miss the Carabao Cup clash on Wednesday.
Former Liverpool midfielder Xabi Alonso will be disappointed to be without his talisman after Palmer first bundled into Mateus Fernandes, triggering a flashpoint at Stamford Bridge, before leaving his studs on former Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher.
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Referee Chris Kavanagh faced a straightforward call, having deemed the initial incident worthy of only a booking. Former Manchester United defender Gary Neville believes that Palmer completely lost his head.
"He's spot on the referee, Cole Palmer has lost his head in the last 10 minutes," he said.
"That one is no brainer. That's just a silly challenge, he knows exactly what he's doing. Not a good challenge, naughty, really naughty."
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Cole Palmer of Chelsea reacts after being sent off(Image: Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images)
Suspensions resulting from a red card in the Premier League carry over into domestic cup competitions. This means Palmer will be absent for the Liverpool fixture before returning to availability in time for Chelsea's clash with Manchester United next week.
Alonso said he did not see Palmer's fouls but accepted his side did not do enough against Tottenham. "We are all disappointed with the result, with the performance collectively and individually we were not at our best level," he said.
"It was about the first goal and it went their way and with 10 men it was difficult but we can do better.
"Chances were the main thing, they had few and we had few. We spoke at half time we had to be patient and be mature. We can do better.
"We wanted to have this fluidity in the middle. We wanted the pockets filed with Cole Palmer and Morgan Rogers. There were situations but overall we have to do better."