Delap Back in Action as Stamford Bridge Side Aim to Solve Striker Issues
Attacker Liam Delap is coming back from a muscle issue at a important period for Chelsea.
The Stamford Bridge outfit suffered a 2-1 defeat against shock contenders Sunderland at their home ground on recently, with boss Enzo Maresca blaming "limited inventiveness" and his team's delivery being "below standard".
Chelsea's forwards are struggling for goals and goal contributions as Delap returns in the EFL Cup against lowly Wolves on Wednesday (evening kickoff), having sat out 10 fixtures since picking up the problem in the 2-0 win over Fulham in August.
Maresca commented the young striker will be slowly integrated "slowly", and the summer signing's comeback is vital for a side facing questions over their inconsistency, which has left the domestic cups their best opportunity of winning a trophy this campaign.
Delap to Ease Burden On Joao Pedro
Chelsea signed Delap from the Championship side for a £30 million fee despite attention from Old Trafford club, St James' Park side and Everton.
Yet the Three Lions prospect was second to expensive recruit Joao Pedro in the team ranking at this recent international tournament - and with good reason.
Joao Pedro registered a trio of strikes in three outings as Chelsea won the inaugural tournament in the United States. The Brazilian forward added two more goals and three assists in his initial four top-flight matches after arriving from Brighton.
More lately, however, Joao Pedro has been goalless in his past seven matches. Maresca revealed he is one of three players - along with central players Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo - who at the moment demand to be "shielded".
When queried about Joao Pedro's decline in performance, Maresca commented: "For sure the conditioning element is crucial. When you are not 100% it's hard to perform, especially in this league."
"Joao Pedro is not a classic center-forward that is going to score 20 goals annually. Joao's a superb talent, he's going to get goals and create chances but he's a alternative type of striker to ones that score 20 to 25 goals annually like the Polish striker, the French superstar or [Erling] Haaland."
Additional Concerns in Chelsea's Attack
Chelsea confront additional challenges beyond their strikers and Joao Pedro's goalless run.
Winger Cole Palmer has played two full matches all season and is not expected return from a groin problem until next month.
Attacking midfielder Jamie Bynoe-Gittens, acquired from Borussia Dortmund for a fee rising to £52m, has failed to score and a single assist in 10 matches. Alejandro Garnacho, a £40m acquisition from Manchester United, has one goal in seven outings and forced an own goal against Benfica.
Estevao Willian, eighteen, has shown promise since arriving from Palmeiras for a £51m package, but has only two goals and a single assist - paralleling homegrown talent Tyrique George.
Striker Marc Guiu and Brighton loanee Facundo Buonanotte have one goal each.
Marc Cucurella, who scored seven from defensive position last term, is still to score this campaign. Winger Pedro Neto has a single strike and two assists in his past two matches, but earlier got only one goal in the initial ten fixtures.
After thirteen games in every tournament no striker has more than two goals, with engine room operators Fernandez and Caicedo Chelsea's equal leading marksmen with four.
Queried whether a lack of natural goalscorers means goals must come from multiple sources, Maresca said: "Definitely, yes. We frequently mentioned that the quintet of attackers at the attack, we need multiple goals per player, in the fashion we managed last campaign."
Maresca has discovered methods to compete despite goal-scoring variability. Chelsea are second for set-piece goals in the top flight, one behind Arsenal. In addition, the Stamford Bridge side are the pioneering side to have ten distinct net-finders in the first division this campaign.
Is the Number Nine Hoodoo About to Lift?
Some Chelsea supporters think the striker's jersey - taken by Delap in the off-season - is jinxed. It had been available since 2023, and squad members who donned it since the mid-2000s have found scoring difficult, including:
- Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (2022-23) - a trio of scores in 21 games
- Romelu Lukaku (2021-22) - 15 scores in 58 appearances
- Tammy Abraham (2019-20, 2021-22) - 30 scores in 82 games
- Gonzalo Higuain (2018-19) - five strikes in 19 games
- Alvaro Morata (2017-18) - 24 goals in seventy-two matches
- Radamel Falcao (2015-16) - one goal in twelve matches
- Fernando Torres (2010-11, 2014-15): 45 goals in one hundred seventy-two matches
- Franco di Santo (2008-10) - zero strikes in sixteen matches
- Steve Sidwell (2007-08) - a single strike in twenty-five matches
- Khalid Boulahrouz (2006-07) - failed to score in twenty matches
A engine room operator and backline player are among those listed, and some would contend Abraham ended the jinx with his performance, while iconic forwards such as Peter Osgood and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink thrived with the striker's jersey.
But Delap was unfazed when queried about the hoodoo. "I don't believe [who believes in curses]," he stated at the Club World Cup.
"In the final analysis it's a digit on the shirt of your kit. It's just a digit that has always been related to strikers so it's something that I appreciate and there's no pressure."
