Xabi Alonso has come out swinging in defense of Cole Palmer, insisting the Chelsea No 10 remains committed to playing for England - and revealing that the attacking midfielder missed this international break due to a problem related to the groin injury that sidelined him for much of last season.

The saga began when Thomas Tuchel, England's manager, did not hide his disappointment with Palmer after the 24-year-old made himself unavailable for the start of the country's Nations League campaign last month. Tuchel said Palmer "misses too many opportunities" to play for England and openly questioned whether Palmer even wanted to be part of the squad. Nothing says "I believe in you" quite like a public questioning of your commitment.

Palmer has won five caps since scoring against Spain in the Euro 2024 final, but his latest withdrawal was for genuine reasons. He struggled with persistent groin pain last season - which led to him missing out on a place in Tuchel's World Cup squad - and felt minor irritation before Chelsea's defeat by Brentford last month. The injury still requires careful management, and Alonso is adamant that Chelsea's talisman is intent on playing for England.

"The most important thing for Cole is to be fully fit, that he enjoys his game, that he is feeling OK," Alonso said. "Whenever he is not, like in the Brentford game, we could see that he was struggling. He's committed but he needs to be fully fit to play. We need him - the club and the national team."

The recent issue is nowhere near as bad as when Palmer struggled to shoot properly last season. Resting during the extended break has helped. "Now he's fine," Alonso said. "He's been feeling better this week. We use the first two weeks for him to recover. It's a little bit from the pubalgia he had."

Tuchel has plenty of competition in attacking midfield, and it remains to be seen whether he picks Palmer for next month's games against Croatia and Spain. Alonso was asked whether a player can be considered truly world class if they do not play international football. "Things happen naturally," he said. "When you show for your club that you are a top-level player and you have regularity, normally it is the natural way that you are part of the national team."

Alonso was nonplussed to hear about broadcaster Piers Morgan calling Palmer a bottle job for failing to represent England. "I don't know the comment and I don't know the guy," he said - a response that manages to be both a dismissal and a burn in one sentence.

Palmer has been in fine form for Chelsea this season, scoring four goals. They will need him at his best after three league games without a win. Alonso hopes that Reece James, Moisés Caicedo and Marco Palestra will also return from injury against Bournemouth.