Delap Returns as Chelsea Seek to Fix Forward Concerns
Striker Liam Delap is coming back from a muscle issue at a crucial moment for Chelsea.
The Stamford Bridge outfit lost 2-1 against unexpected challengers Sunderland at their home ground on recently, with boss Enzo Maresca citing "a lack of creativity" and his squad's passes being "below standard".
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 midweek (evening kickoff), having sat out 10 fixtures since sustaining the injury in the victory over Fulham in the summer.
Maresca said the 22-year-old will be slowly integrated "slowly", and the recent acquisition's availability is vital for a team facing questions over their mixed results, which has left the national tournaments their most realistic chance of claiming silverware this term.
Delap to Share Load With Joao Pedro
Chelsea acquired Delap from the Tractor Boys for £30m despite pursuit by the Red Devils, St James' Park side and the Toffees.
Yet the England Under-21s forward was below £55 million acquisition Joao Pedro in the team ranking at this recent international tournament - and with valid cause.
Joao Pedro scored three goals in three matches as Chelsea won the inaugural tournament in the USA. The Seleção attacker scored another two and three assists in his first four Premier League games after joining from Brighton.
More recently, however, Joao Pedro has been goalless in his last seven games. Maresca said he is one of a trio of players - along with engine room operators Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo - who currently need to be "handled carefully".
When asked about Joao Pedro's decline in performance, Maresca remarked: "Certainly the physical part is important. When you are not fully fit it's hard to perform, especially in this competition."
"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 find the net and create chances but he's a distinctive forward to players who get 20 to 25 goals annually like the Polish striker, [Kylian] Mbappe or the City striker."
Wider Problems in Chelsea's Forward Line
Chelsea confront additional challenges in addition to their forwards and Joao Pedro's scoreless streak.
Attacker Cole Palmer has featured for ninety minutes twice all term and is not expected return from a lower body issue until December.
Wide player Jamie Bynoe-Gittens, brought in from Borussia Dortmund for a fee rising to £52m, has no goals and one assist in ten games. Alejandro Garnacho, a £40 million signing from Manchester United, has one score in seven outings and caused an own goal against Benfica.
Estevao Willian, 18, has shown promise since arriving from Palmeiras for a potential £51 million deal, but has merely two scores and one setup - matching youth product Tyrique George.
Forward Marc Guiu and loan signing Facundo Buonanotte have a single strike apiece.
Marc Cucurella, who notched seven from full-back last season, is still to score this campaign. Winger Pedro Neto has one score and two setups in his past two matches, but earlier found the net just once in the opening ten matches.
After thirteen fixtures in various cups no attacker has over two strikes, with central players Fernandez and Caicedo Chelsea's equal leading marksmen with four goals.
Questioned whether a shortage of clinical finishers means duties need distributing, Maresca commented: "Definitely, yes. We repeatedly stated that the five players at the front, we need multiple goals per player, in the way we have done last season."
Maresca has developed approaches to be competitive despite attacking inconsistency. Chelsea are runner-up in dead-ball situations in the English top division, one behind Arsenal. In furthermore, the West London club are the pioneering side to have ten various goalscorers in the first division this term.
Can Chelsea's Striker Jinx End?
Some Chelsea fans believe the center-forward number - taken by Delap in the off-season - is hexed. It had been vacant since recently, and squad members who donned it since 2006 have had goal droughts, 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) - thirty strikes in 82 games
- Gonzalo Higuain (2018-19) - five strikes in 19 games
- Alvaro Morata (2017-18) - twenty-four strikes in seventy-two matches
- Radamel Falcao (2015-16) - a single strike in twelve matches
- Fernando Torres (2010-11, 2014-15): forty-five strikes in 172 appearances
- Franco di Santo (2008-10) - no goals in sixteen matches
- Steve Sidwell (2007-08) - one score in twenty-five matches
- Khalid Boulahrouz (2006-07) - zero strikes in 20 appearances
A engine room operator and defensive specialist are among those listed, and some would suggest Abraham lifted the hoodoo with his achievement, while iconic forwards such as Peter Osgood and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink flourished with the number nine.
But Delap was unfazed when queried about the hoodoo. "I don't believe [who believes in curses]," he commented at the international tournament.
"In the final analysis it's a digit on the shirt of your kit. It's just a digit that has historically been connected to strikers so it's something that I appreciate and there's zero expectation."
