Delap Returns as Chelsea Seek to Fix Attacking Problems
Forward Liam Delap is returning from a thigh problem at a important period for Chelsea.
The West London club suffered a 2-1 defeat against unexpected challengers Sunderland at Stamford Bridge on recently, with manager Enzo Maresca attributing "limited inventiveness" and his side's crossing being "below standard".
Chelsea's forwards are struggling for goals and goal contributions as Delap is back available in the EFL Cup against bottom-half Wolves on Wednesday (19:45 GMT), having missed 10 games since suffering the setback in the success over Fulham in August.
Maresca said the 22-year-old will be slowly integrated "slowly", and the new recruit's return is crucial for a club facing criticism over their mixed results, which has left the domestic cups their best opportunity of claiming silverware this campaign.
Delap to Take Pressure Off Joao Pedro
Chelsea signed Delap from the Championship side for £30m despite interest from Old Trafford club, the Magpies and Goodison Park team.
Yet the young English striker was second to expensive recruit Joao Pedro in the selection hierarchy at this global competition - and with valid cause.
Joao Pedro registered a trio of strikes in three outings as Chelsea claimed the first edition in the USA. The Brazilian forward notched additional strikes and three assists in his opening quartet of league fixtures after arriving from Brighton.
More recently, however, Joao Pedro has been goalless in his past seven matches. Maresca revealed he is one of three squad members - along with central players Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo - who at the moment demand to be "protected".
When queried about Joao Pedro's decline in performance, Maresca said: "For sure the fitness aspect is vital. When you are not 100% it's difficult to compete, especially in this competition."
"Joao Pedro is not a traditional striker that is going to reach twenty strikes every season. Joao's a fantastic player, he's going to find the net and give assists but he's a different kind of nine to ones that score 20 to 25 goals each year like the Bayern legend, the French superstar or [Erling] Haaland."
Broader Issues in Chelsea's Offense
Chelsea confront wider issues in addition to their forwards and Joao Pedro's scoreless streak.
Attacker Cole Palmer has played two full matches all campaign and is unlikely to be back from a groin problem until next month.
Wide player Jamie Bynoe-Gittens, signed from Borussia Dortmund for a fee rising to £52m, has zero strikes and one assist in 10 matches. Alejandro Garnacho, a £40 million signing from Manchester United, has a single strike in seven games and forced an own goal against Benfica.
Estevao Willian, eighteen, has entertained since joining from Palmeiras for a fee rising to £51m, but has only two goals and one setup - paralleling homegrown talent Tyrique George.
Attacker Marc Guiu and Seagulls temporary signing Facundo Buonanotte have a single strike apiece.
Marc Cucurella, who got seven from defensive position last term, is yet to find the net this term. Attacking player Pedro Neto has one score and two setups in his previous two fixtures, but prior to that found the net just once in the initial ten fixtures.
After 13 matches in every tournament no striker has more than two goals, with central players Fernandez and Caicedo Chelsea's equal leading marksmen with four strikes.
Asked whether a shortage of clinical finishers means duties need distributing, Maresca stated: "Definitely, yes. We said many times that the five players at the offense, we need six, seven, eight, nine, 10 goals each, in the manner we achieved last season."
Maresca has discovered methods to compete despite goal-scoring variability. Chelsea are second place for free-kick and corner scores in the Premier League, one behind Arsenal. In moreover, the West London club are the initial club to have 10 different scorers in the top flight this term.
Can Chelsea's Striker Jinx End?
Some Chelsea followers feel the striker's jersey - assigned to Delap in the summer - is cursed. It had been available since 2023, and footballers who donned it since 2006 have had goal droughts, including:
- Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (2022-23) - three goals in 21 games
- Romelu Lukaku (2021-22) - fifteen strikes in 58 appearances
- Tammy Abraham (2019-20, 2021-22) - thirty strikes in eighty-two matches
- Gonzalo Higuain (2018-19) - five scores in 19 games
- Alvaro Morata (2017-18) - twenty-four strikes in 72 games
- Radamel Falcao (2015-16) - one goal in 12 games
- Fernando Torres (2010-11, 2014-15): 45 scores in 172 games
- Franco di Santo (2008-10) - no goals in 16 games
- Steve Sidwell (2007-08) - one score in 25 appearances
- Khalid Boulahrouz (2006-07) - zero strikes in 20 games
A engine room operator and defender are among those listed, and some would suggest Abraham ended the jinx with his record, while iconic forwards such as Peter Osgood and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink excelled with the number nine.
But Delap was unfazed when asked about the jinx. "I'm not one [who believes in curses]," he said at the global competition.
"In the final analysis it's a digit on the shirt of your uniform. It's just a number that has traditionally been associated to attackers so it's something that I appreciate and there's zero expectation."
