Delap Returns as Chelsea Seek to Fix Attacking Problems
Forward Liam Delap is recovering from a hamstring injury at a crucial moment for Chelsea.
The Stamford Bridge outfit lost 2-1 against surprise package Sunderland at Stamford Bridge on Saturday, with head coach Enzo Maresca blaming "limited inventiveness" and his team's delivery being "not the best".
Chelsea's forwards are finding it hard to score and goal contributions as Delap is back available in the Carabao Cup against lowly Wolves on this week (prime time), having missed 10 games since picking up the problem in the success over Fulham in last month.
Maresca said the 22-year-old will be gradually introduced "slowly", and the new recruit's comeback is crucial for a side facing questions over their unpredictability, which has left the national tournaments their primary hope of securing honors this term.
Delap to Take Pressure Off Joao Pedro
Chelsea signed Delap from the Tractor Boys for a £30 million fee despite attention from Old Trafford club, St James' Park side and Everton.
Yet the Three Lions prospect was behind expensive recruit Joao Pedro in the selection hierarchy at this summer's Club World Cup - and with good reason.
Joao Pedro found the net three times in three matches as Chelsea won the inaugural tournament in the America. The Brazil striker scored another two and three goal contributions in his initial four top-flight matches after joining from Brighton.
More of late, however, Joao Pedro has not scored in his last seven games. Maresca said he is one of three players - along with midfielders Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo - who currently need to be "handled carefully".
When queried about Joao Pedro's dip in form, Maresca remarked: "For sure the fitness aspect is important. When you are not 100% it's difficult to compete, particularly in this league."
"Joao Pedro is not a classic center-forward that is going to score 20 goals every season. Joao's a excellent footballer, he's going to score and create chances but he's a distinctive forward to ones that score 20 to 25 goals annually like the Polish striker, [Kylian] Mbappe or the City striker."
Wider Problems in Chelsea's Attack
Chelsea confront wider issues beyond their forwards and Joao Pedro's drought.
Forward Cole Palmer has completed two games all season 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 fee rising to £52m, has no goals and one goal contribution in ten appearances. Alejandro Garnacho, a £40m acquisition from Manchester United, has a single strike in seven matches and forced an own goal against Benfica.
Estevao Willian, 18, has shown promise since arriving from Palmeiras for a fee rising to £51m, but has just two strikes and one assist - equaling youth product Tyrique George.
Forward Marc Guiu and Brighton loanee Facundo Buonanotte have one score each.
Marc Cucurella, who scored seven from full-back last term, is without a goal this term. Winger Pedro Neto has one score and two assists in his last two games, but prior to that found the net just once in the first 10 games.
After thirteen fixtures in every tournament no attacker has above two scores, 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 stated: "Absolutely, yes. We frequently mentioned that the five players at the attack, we need multiple goals per player, in the fashion we managed last term."
Maresca has developed approaches to challenge despite attacking inconsistency. Chelsea are second place for dead-ball situations in the top flight, one less than Arsenal. In moreover, the Blues are the first team to have ten various goalscorers in the Premier League this campaign.
Can Chelsea's Striker Jinx End?
Some Chelsea fans feel the center-forward number - assigned to Delap in the off-season - is jinxed. It had been available since 2023, and squad members who wore it since the mid-2000s have struggled for goals, 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) - 30 goals in eighty-two matches
- Gonzalo Higuain (2018-19) - five strikes in 19 games
- Alvaro Morata (2017-18) - 24 goals in 72 games
- Radamel Falcao (2015-16) - one goal in 12 appearances
- Fernando Torres (2010-11, 2014-15): forty-five strikes in 172 appearances
- Franco di Santo (2008-10) - zero strikes in 16 appearances
- Steve Sidwell (2007-08) - one goal in twenty-five matches
- Khalid Boulahrouz (2006-07) - failed to score in twenty matches
A engine room operator and defender are among those listed, and some would argue Abraham ended the jinx with his record, while famous attackers such as Peter Osgood and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink flourished with nine on their back.
But Delap was unmoved when asked about the curse. "I don't believe [who believes in curses]," he commented at the international tournament.
"Ultimately it's a figure on the jersey of your uniform. It's just a number that has always been related to attackers so it's something that I appreciate and there's zero expectation."
