🔗 Share this article Delap Makes Comeback as Chelsea Aim to Solve Forward Concerns Liam Delap registered his sole strike for Chelsea at the international tournament during the warm season Forward Liam Delap is recovering from a hamstring injury at a time of need for Chelsea. The Stamford Bridge outfit lost 2-1 against surprise package Sunderland at their stadium on Saturday, with manager Enzo Maresca attributing "limited inventiveness" and his team's delivery being "below standard". Chelsea's attackers are having difficulty finding the net and key passes as Delap returns in the Carabao Cup against bottom-half Wolves on midweek (evening kickoff), having missed 10 games since sustaining the injury in the 2-0 win over Fulham in last month. Maresca said the 22-year-old will be phased in "carefully", and the new recruit's comeback is important for a club facing criticism over their unpredictability, which has left the national tournaments their best opportunity of claiming silverware this season. Delap to Take Pressure Off Joao Pedro Delap (on the left) and Joao Pedro signed for Chelsea this summer for a total £85 million Chelsea brought in Delap from the Tractor Boys for a £30 million fee despite pursuit by the Red Devils, Newcastle United and the Toffees. Yet the Three Lions prospect was second to expensive recruit Joao Pedro in the selection hierarchy at this summer's Club World Cup - and with good reason. Joao Pedro found the net three times in three appearances as Chelsea secured the maiden title in the America. The Brazilian forward added two more goals and three assists in his opening quartet of league fixtures after moving from the Seagulls. More of late, however, Joao Pedro has been goalless in his last seven games. Maresca stated he is one of three players - along with engine room operators Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo - who at the moment demand to be "protected". When questioned about Joao Pedro's drop in output, Maresca remarked: "Definitely the physical part is important. When you are not at peak condition it's difficult to compete, especially in this league." "Joao Pedro is not a number nine that is going to score 20 goals annually. Joao's a superb talent, he's going to get goals and create chances but he's a different kind of nine to ones that score 20 to 25 goals each year like the Bayern legend, the PSG forward or the City striker." Wider Problems in Chelsea's Offense Chelsea confront broader problems beyond their strikers and Joao Pedro's drought. Forward Cole Palmer has completed two games all season and is unlikely to be back from a lower body issue until next month. Wide player Jamie Bynoe-Gittens, acquired from Borussia Dortmund for a £52m package, has no goals and one goal contribution in ten appearances. Alejandro Garnacho, a £40m acquisition from Manchester United, has one goal in seven outings and caused an own goal against Benfica. Estevao Willian, eighteen, has entertained since moving from Palmeiras for a fee rising to £51m, but has merely two scores and one setup - paralleling youth product Tyrique George. Attacker Marc Guiu and Seagulls temporary signing Facundo Buonanotte have a single strike apiece. Marc Cucurella, who scored seven from full-back last term, is without a goal this season. Attacking player Pedro Neto has a single strike and two goal contributions in his past two matches, but earlier found the net just once in the first 10 games. After thirteen fixtures in every tournament no attacker has more than two goals, with engine room operators Fernandez and Caicedo Chelsea's equal leading marksmen with four goals. Asked whether a shortage of clinical finishers means goals must come from multiple sources, Maresca stated: "Certainly, yes. We said many times that the five players at the offense, we need multiple goals per player, in the fashion we managed last campaign." Maresca has discovered methods to challenge despite goal-scoring variability. Chelsea are second for free-kick and corner scores in the top flight, one less than Arsenal. In addition, the Stamford Bridge side are the pioneering side to have ten various goalscorers in the Premier League this campaign. Will Chelsea's Number Nine Curse Be Broken? Khalid Boulahrouz was goalless while bearing the nine shirt for Chelsea Some Chelsea supporters feel the striker's jersey - taken by Delap in the summer - is jinxed. It had been vacant since 2023, and footballers who wore it since the mid-2000s have struggled for goals, including: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (2022-23) - three strikes in twenty-one matches Romelu Lukaku (2021-22) - fifteen strikes in fifty-eight matches Tammy Abraham (2019-20, 2021-22) - thirty strikes in 82 appearances Gonzalo Higuain (2018-19) - five strikes in 19 games Alvaro Morata (2017-18) - 24 goals in seventy-two matches Radamel Falcao (2015-16) - one goal in 12 appearances Fernando Torres (2010-11, 2014-15): forty-five strikes in one hundred seventy-two matches Franco di Santo (2008-10) - no goals in 16 appearances Steve Sidwell (2007-08) - a single strike in 25 appearances Khalid Boulahrouz (2006-07) - no goals in 20 appearances A central player and backline player are part of this selection, and some would contend Abraham lifted the hoodoo with his performance, while legendary strikers such as Peter Osgood and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink flourished with the striker's jersey. But Delap was unfazed when asked about the jinx. "I'm not the type of person [who believes in curses]," he commented at the international tournament. "Ultimately it's a digit on the shirt of your shirt. It's just a digit that has historically been connected to attackers so it's something that I enjoy and there's zero expectation."