🔗 Share this article

Striker Liam Delap is recovering from a thigh problem at a crucial moment for Chelsea.

The West London club suffered a 2-1 defeat against surprise package Sunderland at their stadium on recently, with head coach Enzo Maresca attributing "a lack of creativity" and his squad's passes being "not the best".

Chelsea's strikers are finding it hard to score and goal contributions as Delap makes his comeback in the League Cup against lowly Wolves on Wednesday (prime time), having sat out 10 fixtures since suffering the setback in the 2-0 win over Fulham in the summer.

Maresca stated the emerging talent will be slowly integrated "slowly", and the new recruit's availability is important for a club facing scrutiny over their mixed results, which has left the national tournaments their best opportunity of securing honors this campaign.

Delap to Take Pressure Off Joao Pedro

Chelsea acquired Delap from Ipswich Town for £30m despite attention from the Red Devils, the Magpies and the Toffees.

Yet the England Under-21s forward was second to £55 million acquisition Joao Pedro in the selection hierarchy at this recent international tournament - and with good reason.

Joao Pedro registered a trio of strikes in three matches as Chelsea won the inaugural tournament in the USA. The Seleção attacker notched additional strikes and three setups in his initial four top-flight matches after joining from Brighton.

More recently, however, Joao Pedro has been goalless in his past seven matches. Maresca revealed he is one of three players - along with midfielders Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo - who presently require to be "shielded".

When questioned about Joao Pedro's dip in form, Maresca commented: "For sure the conditioning element is important. When you are not 100% it's challenging to excel, especially in this league."

"Joao Pedro is not a classic center-forward that is going to net twenty times every season. Joao's a fantastic player, he's going to score and create chances but he's a alternative type of striker to those who net 20 to 25 goals annually like [Robert] Lewandowski, the French superstar or the Norwegian goal machine."

Broader Issues in Chelsea's Offense

Chelsea deal with broader problems in addition to their attackers and Joao Pedro's drought.

Attacker Cole Palmer has featured for ninety minutes twice all campaign 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 zero strikes and a single assist in ten games. Alejandro Garnacho, a £40m recruit from Manchester United, has one goal in seven outings and induced an opposition error against Benfica.

Estevao Willian, eighteen, has entertained since arriving from Palmeiras for a potential £51 million deal, but has merely two scores and one assist - equaling academy forward Tyrique George.

Forward Marc Guiu and loan 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 campaign. Attacking player Pedro Neto has a single strike and two goal contributions 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 strikes.

Queried whether a absence of prolific strikers means responsibility must be shared, Maresca commented: "Definitely, yes. We repeatedly stated that the five players at the offense, we need multiple goals per player, in the way we have done last season."

Maresca has discovered methods to be competitive despite attacking inconsistency. Chelsea are runner-up in set-piece goals in the English top division, one less than Arsenal. In furthermore, the Blues are the initial club to have 10 different scorers in the top flight this season.

Is the Number Nine Hoodoo About to Lift?

Some Chelsea followers believe the number nine shirt - claimed by Delap in the off-season - is hexed. It had been vacant since last year, and footballers who sported it since 2006 have found scoring difficult, including:

• Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (2022-23) - a trio of scores in 21 games
• 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 strikes in nineteen matches
• Alvaro Morata (2017-18) - 24 goals in 72 games
• Radamel Falcao (2015-16) - one goal in 12 games
• Fernando Torres (2010-11, 2014-15): 45 goals in 172 games
• Franco di Santo (2008-10) - zero strikes in 16 appearances
• Steve Sidwell (2007-08) - one goal in 25 appearances
• Khalid Boulahrouz (2006-07) - no goals in 20 appearances

A central player and defensive specialist are among those listed, and some would suggest Abraham lifted the hoodoo with his performance, while famous attackers such as Peter Osgood and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink flourished with the striker's jersey.

But Delap was unmoved when questioned about the hoodoo. "I'm not the type of person [who believes in curses]," he commented at the international tournament.

"Ultimately it's a number on the back of your uniform. It's just a figure that has historically been connected to attackers so it's something that I enjoy and there's zero expectation."