Delap Makes Comeback as The Blues Seek to Fix Attacking Problems
Striker Liam Delap is coming back from a thigh problem at a important period for Chelsea.
The Stamford Bridge outfit were beaten 2-1 against surprise package Sunderland at Stamford Bridge on Saturday, with manager Enzo Maresca blaming "insufficient imagination" and his side's crossing being "not the best".
Chelsea's strikers are having difficulty finding the net and assists as Delap makes his comeback in the League Cup against struggling Wolves on Wednesday (evening kickoff), having been absent for 10 matches since sustaining the injury in the 2-0 win over Fulham in the summer.
Maresca said the emerging talent will be slowly integrated "carefully", and the summer signing's return is vital for a club facing questions over their unpredictability, which has left the domestic cups their most realistic chance of securing honors this campaign.
Delap to Share Load With Joao Pedro
Chelsea brought in Delap from Ipswich Town for £30m despite pursuit by Manchester United, Newcastle United and Goodison Park team.
Yet the young English striker was below £55 million acquisition Joao Pedro in the pecking order at this summer's Club World Cup - and with solid justification.
Joao Pedro scored three goals in three appearances as Chelsea won the inaugural tournament in the America. The Brazil striker added two more goals and three goal contributions in his initial four top-flight matches after arriving from Brighton.
More recently, however, Joao Pedro has been goalless in his last seven games. Maresca stated 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 decline in performance, Maresca said: "Certainly the conditioning element is vital. When you are not fully fit it's challenging to excel, especially in this division."
"Joao Pedro is not a classic center-forward that is going to reach twenty strikes each year. Joao's a superb talent, he's going to find the net and provide assists but he's a different kind of nine to players who get 20 to 25 goals every season like the Bayern legend, the French superstar or [Erling] Haaland."
Wider Problems in Chelsea's Attack
Chelsea confront wider issues apart from their attackers and Joao Pedro's drought.
Winger Cole Palmer has played two full matches all campaign and is not expected return from a groin problem until December.
Attacking midfielder Jamie Bynoe-Gittens, acquired from Borussia Dortmund for a potential £52 million deal, has zero strikes and one goal contribution in ten appearances. Alejandro Garnacho, a £40m acquisition from Manchester United, has one score in seven games and forced an own goal against Benfica.
Estevao Willian, the teenager, has impressed since arriving from Palmeiras for a fee rising to £51m, but has just two strikes and one assist - equaling academy forward Tyrique George.
Attacker Marc Guiu and loan signing Facundo Buonanotte have one goal each.
Marc Cucurella, who scored seven from left-back last campaign, is still to score this season. Wide man Pedro Neto has a single strike and two setups in his previous two fixtures, but before that got only one goal in the initial ten fixtures.
After thirteen fixtures in all competitions no attacker has above two scores, with central players Fernandez and Caicedo Chelsea's shared top goalscorers with four strikes.
Asked whether a lack of natural goalscorers means duties need distributing, Maresca commented: "Certainly, yes. We frequently mentioned that the quintet of attackers at the front, we need six, seven, eight, nine, 10 goals each, in the manner we achieved last season."
Maresca has found ways to be competitive despite offensive unpredictability. Chelsea are runner-up in dead-ball situations in the Premier League, one behind Arsenal. In addition, the West London club are the first team to have ten distinct net-finders in the top flight this season.
Is the Number Nine Hoodoo About to Lift?
Some Chelsea followers feel the number nine shirt - claimed by Delap in the summer - is jinxed. It had been available since last year, and footballers who wore it since the mid-2000s have had goal droughts, including:
- Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (2022-23) - three strikes in twenty-one matches
- Romelu Lukaku (2021-22) - 15 scores in 58 appearances
- 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 72 appearances
- Radamel Falcao (2015-16) - one score in 12 appearances
- Fernando Torres (2010-11, 2014-15): 45 scores in one hundred seventy-two matches
- Franco di Santo (2008-10) - no goals in 16 games
- Steve Sidwell (2007-08) - one goal in 25 appearances
- Khalid Boulahrouz (2006-07) - failed to score in 20 games
A midfielder and defensive specialist are part of this selection, and some would suggest Abraham lifted the hoodoo with his record, while iconic forwards such as Peter Osgood and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink flourished with the number nine.
But Delap was unconcerned when queried about the hoodoo. "I'm not one [who believes in curses]," he stated at the Club World Cup.
"In the final analysis it's a digit on the shirt of your kit. It's just a number that has traditionally been associated to attackers so it's something that I enjoy and there's zero expectation."
