Delap Makes Comeback as The Blues Seek to Fix Striker Issues
Striker Liam Delap is coming back from a muscle issue at a important period for Chelsea.
The Stamford Bridge outfit lost 2-1 against unexpected challengers Sunderland at their home ground on the weekend, with head coach Enzo Maresca blaming "insufficient imagination" and his team's delivery being "below standard".
Chelsea's strikers are having difficulty finding the net and key passes as Delap returns in the Carabao Cup against struggling Wolves on this week (prime time), having missed 10 games since suffering the setback in the victory over Fulham in last month.
Maresca commented the young striker will be slowly integrated "slowly", and the recent acquisition's availability is important for a team facing questions over their unpredictability, which has left the cup competitions their best opportunity of securing honors this term.
Delap to Share Load With Joao Pedro
Chelsea acquired Delap from the Championship side for £30m despite pursuit by the Red Devils, Newcastle United and Everton.
Yet the England Under-21s forward was below £55m signing Joao Pedro in the selection hierarchy at this summer's Club World Cup - and with valid cause.
Joao Pedro registered a trio of strikes in three matches as Chelsea won the inaugural tournament in the America. The Seleção attacker added two more goals and three setups in his initial four top-flight matches after joining from Brighton.
More recently, however, Joao Pedro has not scored in his last seven games. Maresca revealed he is one of three squad members - along with central players Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo - who presently require to be "handled carefully".
When asked about Joao Pedro's decline in performance, Maresca said: "For sure the conditioning element is crucial. When you are not fully fit it's hard to perform, particularly in this competition."
"Joao Pedro is not a traditional striker that is going to net twenty times annually. Joao's a excellent footballer, he's going to find the net and provide assists but he's a different kind of nine to ones that score 20 to 25 goals annually like [Robert] Lewandowski, [Kylian] Mbappe or [Erling] Haaland."
Broader Issues in Chelsea's Offense
Chelsea confront broader problems beyond their attackers and Joao Pedro's scoreless streak.
Attacker Cole Palmer has featured for ninety minutes twice all term and is not expected return from a groin injury until December.
Wide player Jamie Bynoe-Gittens, signed from Borussia Dortmund for a fee rising to £52m, has no goals and a single assist in 10 matches. Alejandro Garnacho, a £40m acquisition from Manchester United, has one score in seven games and caused an own goal 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 - matching youth product Tyrique George.
Striker Marc Guiu and Seagulls temporary signing Facundo Buonanotte have a single strike apiece.
Marc Cucurella, who got seven from left-back last season, is still to score this campaign. Winger Pedro Neto has one score and two goal contributions in his last two games, but before that found the net just once in the opening ten matches.
After thirteen fixtures in every tournament no striker has over two strikes, with midfielders Fernandez and Caicedo Chelsea's equal leading marksmen with four strikes.
Queried whether a absence of prolific strikers means responsibility must be shared, Maresca said: "Definitely, yes. We said many times that the five players at the offense, we need six, seven, eight, nine, 10 goals each, in the manner we achieved last term."
Maresca has discovered methods to challenge despite attacking inconsistency. Chelsea are second for set-piece goals in the Premier League, one less than Arsenal. In addition, the West London club are the first team to have 10 different scorers in the first division this term.
Can Chelsea's Striker Jinx End?
Some Chelsea fans believe the number nine shirt - taken by Delap in the off-season - is cursed. It had been available since recently, and footballers who sported it since 2006 have had goal droughts, including:
- Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (2022-23) - three strikes in twenty-one matches
- Romelu Lukaku (2021-22) - fifteen strikes in 58 games
- Tammy Abraham (2019-20, 2021-22) - thirty strikes in eighty-two matches
- Gonzalo Higuain (2018-19) - five goals in 19 appearances
- Alvaro Morata (2017-18) - twenty-four strikes in seventy-two matches
- Radamel Falcao (2015-16) - a single strike in 12 games
- Fernando Torres (2010-11, 2014-15): 45 goals in 172 appearances
- Franco di Santo (2008-10) - failed to score in sixteen matches
- Steve Sidwell (2007-08) - a single strike in twenty-five matches
- Khalid Boulahrouz (2006-07) - failed to score in twenty matches
A midfielder and backline player are among those listed, and some would argue Abraham ended the jinx with his performance, while famous attackers such as Peter Osgood and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink thrived with nine on their back.
But Delap was unfazed when queried about the hoodoo. "I don't believe [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 kit. It's just a digit that has traditionally been associated to attackers so it's something that I like and there's no pressure."
