Delap Back in Action as Chelsea Aim to Solve Forward Concerns

Forward Liam Delap is returning from a muscle issue at a time of need for Chelsea.

The Stamford Bridge outfit suffered a 2-1 defeat against surprise package Sunderland at Stamford Bridge on the weekend, with boss Enzo Maresca citing "limited inventiveness" and his team's delivery being "not the best".

Chelsea's forwards are finding it hard to score and assists as Delap returns in the Carabao Cup against struggling Wolves on this week (19:45 GMT), having missed 10 games since sustaining the injury in the success over Fulham in last month.

Maresca said the young striker will be slowly integrated "slowly", and the recent acquisition's return is important for a team facing scrutiny over their inconsistency, which has left the national tournaments their primary hope of winning a trophy this campaign.

Delap to Take Pressure Off Joao Pedro

Chelsea brought in Delap from Ipswich Town for £30m despite attention from Manchester United, Newcastle United and the Toffees.

Yet the young English striker was second to £55 million acquisition Joao Pedro in the selection hierarchy at this global competition - and with solid justification.

Joao Pedro found the net three times in three appearances as Chelsea won the inaugural tournament in the United States. The Brazil striker added two more goals and three goal contributions in his opening quartet of league fixtures after moving from the Seagulls.

More recently, however, Joao Pedro has been goalless in his last seven games. Maresca said he is one of three squad members - along with engine room operators Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo - who presently require to be "handled carefully".

When asked about Joao Pedro's dip in form, Maresca said: "For sure the fitness aspect is vital. When you are not 100% it's challenging to excel, especially in this league."

"Joao Pedro is not a traditional striker that is going to net twenty times every season. Joao's a fantastic player, he's going to get goals and provide assists but he's a alternative type of striker to those who net 20 to 25 goals every season like the Polish striker, the French superstar or [Erling] Haaland."

Additional Concerns in Chelsea's Offense

Chelsea face broader problems in addition to their strikers and Joao Pedro's drought.

Forward Cole Palmer has completed two games all term and is unlikely to be back from a lower body issue until next month.

Wide player Jamie Bynoe-Gittens, brought in from Borussia Dortmund for a £52m package, has no goals and one assist in ten games. Alejandro Garnacho, a £40m recruit from Manchester United, has one score in seven games and induced an opposition error against Benfica.

Estevao Willian, eighteen, has shown promise since moving from Palmeiras for a potential £51 million deal, but has only two goals and one assist - paralleling homegrown talent Tyrique George.

Attacker Marc Guiu and loan signing Facundo Buonanotte have one score each.

Marc Cucurella, who got seven from left-back last season, is still to score this term. Wide man Pedro Neto has a single strike and two setups in his last two games, but earlier scored only once in the first 10 games.

After 13 matches in all competitions no attacker has more than two goals, with midfielders Fernandez and Caicedo Chelsea's equal leading marksmen with four strikes.

Queried whether a shortage of clinical finishers means goals must come from multiple sources, Maresca commented: "Definitely, yes. We said many times that the front five at the offense, we need multiple goals per player, in the way we have done last season."

Maresca has found ways to be competitive despite offensive unpredictability. Chelsea are runner-up in set-piece goals in the English top division, one behind Arsenal. In moreover, the Stamford Bridge side are the first team to have ten various goalscorers in the first division this campaign.

Is the Number Nine Hoodoo About to Lift?

Some Chelsea followers believe the number nine shirt - taken by Delap in the off-season - is hexed. It had been available since 2023, and squad members who sported it since 2006 have had goal droughts, including:

• Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (2022-23) - three strikes in 21 appearances
• Romelu Lukaku (2021-22) - fifteen strikes in 58 games
• Tammy Abraham (2019-20, 2021-22) - 30 goals in 82 appearances
• Gonzalo Higuain (2018-19) - five scores in 19 games
• Alvaro Morata (2017-18) - twenty-four strikes in 72 appearances
• Radamel Falcao (2015-16) - one goal in 12 appearances
• Fernando Torres (2010-11, 2014-15): forty-five strikes in one hundred seventy-two matches
• Franco di Santo (2008-10) - zero strikes in sixteen matches
• Steve Sidwell (2007-08) - one score in 25 appearances
• Khalid Boulahrouz (2006-07) - no goals in twenty matches

A engine room operator and defender are part of this selection, and some would contend Abraham broke the curse with his record, while iconic forwards such as Peter Osgood and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink thrived with the striker's jersey.

But Delap was unmoved when questioned about the jinx. "I'm not the type of person [who believes in curses]," he commented at the global competition.

"At the end of the day it's a figure on the jersey of your uniform. It's just a figure that has traditionally been associated to strikers so it's something that I like and there's no added burden."