Delap Back in Action as Chelsea Aim to Solve Forward Concerns
Striker Liam Delap is coming back from a muscle issue at a time of need for Chelsea.
The Stamford Bridge outfit were beaten 2-1 against surprise package Sunderland at their stadium on recently, with manager Enzo Maresca blaming "insufficient imagination" and his squad's passes being "subpar".
Chelsea's attackers are struggling for goals and key passes as Delap is back available in the EFL Cup against lowly Wolves on midweek (prime time), having sat out 10 fixtures since sustaining the injury in the 2-0 win over Fulham in last month.
Maresca stated the emerging talent will be gradually introduced "slowly", and the recent acquisition's comeback is vital for a side facing questions over their unpredictability, which has left the national tournaments their best opportunity of securing honors this season.
Delap to Ease Burden On Joao Pedro
Chelsea brought in Delap from the Tractor Boys for a £30 million fee despite pursuit by the Red Devils, St James' Park side and Goodison Park team.
Yet the Three Lions prospect was second to £55m signing Joao Pedro in the selection hierarchy at this recent international tournament - and with solid justification.
Joao Pedro found the net three times in three appearances as Chelsea secured the maiden title in the USA. The Brazil striker scored another two and three assists in his opening quartet of league fixtures after arriving from Brighton.
More lately, however, Joao Pedro has failed to score in his previous seven fixtures. Maresca revealed he is one of three players - along with midfielders Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo - who currently need to be "protected".
When questioned about Joao Pedro's drop in output, Maresca said: "Definitely the conditioning element is crucial. When you are not 100% it's hard to perform, particularly in this competition."
"Joao Pedro is not a traditional striker that is going to score 20 goals each year. Joao's a superb talent, he's going to find the net and provide assists but he's a alternative type of striker to players who get 20 to 25 goals every season like [Robert] Lewandowski, [Kylian] Mbappe or the Norwegian goal machine."
Broader Issues in Chelsea's Offense
Chelsea deal with wider issues in addition to their forwards and Joao Pedro's goalless run.
Winger Cole Palmer has completed two games all campaign and is not expected return from a lower body issue until next month.
Winger Jamie Bynoe-Gittens, signed from Borussia Dortmund for a potential £52 million deal, has zero strikes and a single assist in 10 matches. Alejandro Garnacho, a £40m acquisition from Manchester United, has a single strike in seven outings and caused an own goal against Benfica.
Estevao Willian, eighteen, has impressed since joining from Palmeiras for a potential £51 million deal, but has merely two scores and one assist - equaling youth product Tyrique George.
Attacker Marc Guiu and loan signing Facundo Buonanotte have one score each.
Marc Cucurella, who notched seven from left-back last season, is without a goal this season. Winger Pedro Neto has a single strike and two assists in his previous two fixtures, but before that found the net just once in the opening ten matches.
After 13 matches in every tournament no striker has more than two goals, with engine room operators Fernandez and Caicedo Chelsea's joint top scorers with four goals.
Questioned whether a shortage of clinical finishers means goals must come from multiple sources, Maresca commented: "Definitely, yes. We repeatedly stated that the quintet of attackers at the offense, we need six, seven, eight, nine, 10 goals each, in the way we have done last season."
Maresca has developed approaches to be competitive despite attacking inconsistency. Chelsea are second place for free-kick and corner scores in the English top division, one less than Arsenal. In addition, the West London club are the first team to have ten distinct net-finders in the first division this campaign.
Can Chelsea's Striker Jinx End?
Some Chelsea followers believe the number nine shirt - assigned to Delap in the summer - is cursed. It had been vacant since recently, and footballers who wore 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 fifty-eight matches
- Tammy Abraham (2019-20, 2021-22) - thirty strikes in 82 appearances
- Gonzalo Higuain (2018-19) - five goals in 19 appearances
- Alvaro Morata (2017-18) - twenty-four strikes in 72 games
- Radamel Falcao (2015-16) - one goal in 12 appearances
- Fernando Torres (2010-11, 2014-15): 45 goals in one hundred seventy-two matches
- Franco di Santo (2008-10) - no goals in 16 appearances
- Steve Sidwell (2007-08) - a single strike in twenty-five matches
- Khalid Boulahrouz (2006-07) - failed to score in 20 games
A central player and defender are among those listed, and some would argue Abraham ended the jinx with his achievement, while famous attackers such as Peter Osgood and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink thrived with the striker's jersey.
But Delap was unfazed when questioned about the hoodoo. "I'm not one [who believes in curses]," he said at the Club World Cup.
"At the end of the day it's a digit on the shirt of your uniform. It's just a digit that has historically been connected to attackers so it's something that I enjoy and there's no added burden."