Delap Makes Comeback as Stamford Bridge Side Aim to Solve Striker Issues
Striker Liam Delap is returning from a hamstring injury at a crucial moment for Chelsea.
The Stamford Bridge outfit were beaten 2-1 against unexpected challengers Sunderland at their home ground on recently, with manager Enzo Maresca blaming "insufficient imagination" and his squad's passes being "not the best".
Chelsea's forwards are struggling for goals and assists as Delap is back available in the League Cup against struggling Wolves on Wednesday (prime time), having been absent for 10 matches since picking up the problem in the victory over Fulham in last month.
Maresca said the emerging talent will be gradually introduced "slowly", and the summer signing's availability is crucial for a team facing scrutiny over their inconsistency, which has left the national tournaments their best opportunity of securing honors this campaign.
Delap to Share Load With Joao Pedro
Chelsea brought in Delap from the Championship side for a £30 million fee despite interest from the Red Devils, St James' Park side and Goodison Park team.
Yet the England Under-21s forward was below expensive recruit Joao Pedro in the pecking order at this summer's Club World Cup - and with good reason.
Joao Pedro scored three goals in three appearances as Chelsea won the inaugural tournament in the America. The Brazil striker notched additional strikes and three assists in his initial four top-flight matches after moving from the Seagulls.
More of late, 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 at the moment demand to be "handled carefully".
When questioned about Joao Pedro's decline in performance, Maresca commented: "For sure the physical part is important. When you are not fully fit it's difficult to compete, especially in this competition."
"Joao Pedro is not a number nine that is going to net twenty times each year. Joao's a excellent footballer, he's going to get goals and provide assists but he's a different kind of nine to ones that score 20 to 25 goals annually like the Bayern legend, the PSG forward or the Norwegian goal machine."
Wider Problems in Chelsea's Attack
Chelsea confront wider issues in addition to their strikers and Joao Pedro's goalless run.
Attacker Cole Palmer has played two full matches all season and is not anticipated to feature from a groin problem until the winter.
Winger Jamie Bynoe-Gittens, signed from Borussia Dortmund for a potential £52 million deal, has zero strikes and a single assist in ten appearances. Alejandro Garnacho, a £40 million signing from Manchester United, has one score in seven games and caused an own goal against Benfica.
Estevao Willian, 18, has shown promise since moving from Palmeiras for a potential £51 million deal, but has merely two scores and one setup - paralleling academy forward Tyrique George.
Forward Marc Guiu and Seagulls temporary signing Facundo Buonanotte have a single strike apiece.
Marc Cucurella, who scored seven from left-back last campaign, is yet to find the net this season. Attacking player Pedro Neto has one score and two setups in his last two games, but earlier got only one goal in the opening ten matches.
After 13 matches in various cups no striker has over two strikes, with central players Fernandez and Caicedo Chelsea's shared top goalscorers with four.
Questioned whether a lack of natural goalscorers means goals must come from multiple sources, Maresca stated: "Certainly, yes. We said many times that the quintet of attackers at the offense, we need multiple goals per player, in the manner we achieved last season."
Maresca has found ways to compete despite goal-scoring variability. Chelsea are second for dead-ball situations in the top flight, one less than Arsenal. In moreover, the West London club are the initial club to have 10 different scorers in the top flight this season.
Will Chelsea's Number Nine Curse Be Broken?
Some Chelsea supporters believe the striker's jersey - assigned to Delap in the off-season - is jinxed. It had been vacant since 2023, and players who wore it since 2006 have found scoring difficult, including:
- Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (2022-23) - a trio of scores in twenty-one matches
- Romelu Lukaku (2021-22) - 15 goals in 58 appearances
- Tammy Abraham (2019-20, 2021-22) - thirty strikes in 82 appearances
- Gonzalo Higuain (2018-19) - five goals in nineteen matches
- Alvaro Morata (2017-18) - 24 goals in seventy-two matches
- Radamel Falcao (2015-16) - one score in 12 appearances
- Fernando Torres (2010-11, 2014-15): forty-five strikes in 172 appearances
- Franco di Santo (2008-10) - failed to score in sixteen matches
- Steve Sidwell (2007-08) - one score in 25 appearances
- Khalid Boulahrouz (2006-07) - failed to score in 20 appearances
A central player and defensive specialist are included in this group, and some would argue Abraham lifted the hoodoo with his performance, while iconic forwards such as Peter Osgood and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink excelled with nine on their back.
But Delap was unmoved when asked about the hoodoo. "I'm not the type of person [who believes in curses]," he said at the international tournament.
"Ultimately it's a number on the back of your shirt. It's just a digit that has traditionally been associated to strikers so it's something that I enjoy and there's no pressure."
