Delap Back in Action as Stamford Bridge Side Aim to Solve Striker Issues
Striker Liam Delap is recovering from a hamstring injury at a crucial moment for Chelsea.
The Blues lost 2-1 against surprise package Sunderland at Stamford Bridge on the weekend, with manager Enzo Maresca citing "limited inventiveness" and his team's delivery being "not the best".
Chelsea's forwards are finding it hard to score and key passes as Delap is back available in the League Cup against struggling Wolves on this week (prime time), having been absent for 10 matches since picking up the problem in the success over Fulham in the summer.
Maresca commented the 22-year-old will be slowly integrated "gradually", and the new recruit's availability is important for a side facing scrutiny over their inconsistency, which has left the cup competitions their best opportunity of securing honors this season.
Delap to Ease Burden On Joao Pedro
Chelsea acquired Delap from the Championship side for £30m despite pursuit by Manchester United, St James' Park side and the Toffees.
Yet the Three Lions prospect was below £55m signing Joao Pedro in the team ranking at this recent international tournament - and with good reason.
Joao Pedro scored three goals in three outings as Chelsea secured the maiden title in the United States. The Seleção attacker 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 last seven games. Maresca stated he is one of three players - along with midfielders Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo - who presently require to be "protected".
When questioned about Joao Pedro's drop in output, Maresca said: "For sure the conditioning element is vital. When you are not 100% it's hard to perform, particularly in this division."
"Joao Pedro is not a traditional striker that is going to score 20 goals annually. Joao's a fantastic player, he's going to score and create chances but he's a different kind of nine to players who get 20 to 25 goals each year like the Polish striker, [Kylian] Mbappe or [Erling] Haaland."
Additional Concerns in Chelsea's Forward Line
Chelsea deal with broader problems beyond their attackers and Joao Pedro's drought.
Forward Cole Palmer has played two full matches all campaign and is not expected return from a lower body issue until the winter.
Attacking midfielder Jamie Bynoe-Gittens, acquired from Borussia Dortmund for a potential £52 million deal, has failed to score and a single assist in ten appearances. Alejandro Garnacho, a £40 million signing from Manchester United, has one goal in seven matches and caused an own goal against Benfica.
Estevao Willian, the teenager, has entertained since arriving from Palmeiras for a potential £51 million deal, but has merely two scores and one assist - matching homegrown talent Tyrique George.
Striker Marc Guiu and Brighton loanee Facundo Buonanotte have one score each.
Marc Cucurella, who notched seven from left-back last campaign, is without a goal this campaign. Winger Pedro Neto has a single strike and two goal contributions in his previous two fixtures, but before that found the net just once in the initial ten fixtures.
After thirteen games in all competitions no striker has above two scores, with central players Fernandez and Caicedo Chelsea's equal leading marksmen with four goals.
Asked whether a lack of natural goalscorers means responsibility must be shared, Maresca commented: "Certainly, yes. We frequently mentioned that the front five at the front, we need six, seven, eight, nine, 10 goals each, in the manner we achieved last term."
Maresca has developed approaches to be competitive despite goal-scoring variability. Chelsea are second place for set-piece goals in the Premier League, one less than Arsenal. In addition, the Stamford Bridge side are the initial club to have 10 different scorers in the Premier League this season.
Will Chelsea's Number Nine Curse Be Broken?
Some Chelsea supporters think the number nine shirt - claimed by Delap in the summer - is hexed. It had been unoccupied since 2023, and footballers who donned it since the mid-2000s have struggled for goals, including:
- Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (2022-23) - a trio of scores in twenty-one matches
- Romelu Lukaku (2021-22) - 15 scores in 58 games
- Tammy Abraham (2019-20, 2021-22) - 30 scores in 82 appearances
- Gonzalo Higuain (2018-19) - five strikes in 19 appearances
- Alvaro Morata (2017-18) - twenty-four strikes in seventy-two matches
- Radamel Falcao (2015-16) - a single strike in 12 appearances
- Fernando Torres (2010-11, 2014-15): forty-five strikes in one hundred seventy-two matches
- Franco di Santo (2008-10) - failed to score in 16 games
- Steve Sidwell (2007-08) - one score in twenty-five matches
- Khalid Boulahrouz (2006-07) - zero strikes in twenty matches
A midfielder and backline player are included in this group, and some would contend Abraham lifted the hoodoo with his performance, while legendary strikers such as Peter Osgood and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink excelled with the striker's jersey.
But Delap was unconcerned when questioned about the curse. "I'm not one [who believes in curses]," he said at the international tournament.
"Ultimately it's a digit on the shirt of your kit. It's just a number that has always been related to forwards so it's something that I enjoy and there's no added burden."
