🔗 Share this article Delap Back in Action as Chelsea Seek to Fix Forward Concerns Liam Delap registered his sole strike for Chelsea at the global competition during the warm season Attacker Liam Delap is returning from a thigh problem at a time of need for Chelsea. The West London club were beaten 2-1 against unexpected challengers Sunderland at Stamford Bridge on the weekend, with head coach Enzo Maresca citing "limited inventiveness" and his squad's passes being "subpar". Chelsea's strikers are struggling for goals and key passes as Delap makes his comeback in the Carabao Cup against struggling Wolves on midweek (19:45 GMT), having missed 10 games since sustaining the injury in the success over Fulham in last month. Maresca commented the emerging talent will be slowly integrated "carefully", and the recent acquisition's comeback is crucial for a club facing criticism over their mixed results, which has left the domestic cups their primary hope of claiming silverware this term. Delap to Ease Burden On Joao Pedro Delap (to the left) and Joao Pedro joined Chelsea this summer for a aggregate £85m Chelsea brought in Delap from the Tractor Boys for thirty million pounds despite attention from the Red Devils, Newcastle United and the Toffees. Yet the England Under-21s forward was behind expensive recruit Joao Pedro in the pecking order at this summer's Club World Cup - and with valid cause. Joao Pedro scored three goals in three matches as Chelsea secured the maiden title in the America. The Seleção attacker added two more goals and three assists in his first four Premier League games after moving from the Seagulls. More recently, however, Joao Pedro has not scored in his previous seven fixtures. Maresca said he is one of three squad members - along with central players Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo - who at the moment demand to be "handled carefully". When queried about Joao Pedro's dip in form, Maresca said: "Definitely the fitness aspect is crucial. When you are not 100% it's difficult to compete, especially in this league." "Joao Pedro is not a number nine that is going to net twenty times annually. Joao's a fantastic player, he's going to get goals and give assists but he's a different kind of nine to those who net 20 to 25 goals annually like the Polish striker, the PSG forward or the Norwegian goal machine." Wider Problems in Chelsea's Attack Chelsea face additional challenges apart from their attackers and Joao Pedro's goalless run. Forward Cole Palmer has featured for ninety minutes twice all campaign and is unlikely to be back from a groin injury until next month. Winger Jamie Bynoe-Gittens, signed from Borussia Dortmund for a potential £52 million deal, has no goals and a single assist in ten appearances. Alejandro Garnacho, a £40m acquisition from Manchester United, has one score in seven outings and caused an own goal against Benfica. Estevao Willian, eighteen, has entertained since joining from Palmeiras for a fee rising to £51m, but has just two strikes and one assist - equaling homegrown talent Tyrique George. Forward Marc Guiu and Brighton loanee Facundo Buonanotte have one goal each. Marc Cucurella, who scored seven from defensive position last campaign, is without a goal this campaign. Attacking player Pedro Neto has a single strike and two setups in his previous two fixtures, but before that got only one goal in the opening ten matches. After 13 matches in all competitions no attacker has over two strikes, with engine room operators Fernandez and Caicedo Chelsea's joint top scorers with four strikes. Questioned whether a absence of prolific strikers means duties need distributing, Maresca said: "Absolutely, yes. We frequently mentioned that the five players at the front, we need multiple goals per player, in the fashion we managed last campaign." Maresca has found ways to compete despite goal-scoring variability. Chelsea are second place for free-kick and corner scores in the top flight, trailing by one Arsenal. In moreover, the Stamford Bridge side are the initial club to have 10 different scorers in the Premier League this term. Can Chelsea's Striker Jinx End? Khalid Boulahrouz didn't find the net while bearing the nine shirt for Chelsea Some Chelsea fans feel the number nine shirt - assigned to Delap in the summer - is hexed. It had been unoccupied since recently, and players who wore it since 2006 have had goal droughts, including: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (2022-23) - a trio of scores in 21 appearances Romelu Lukaku (2021-22) - 15 scores in 58 appearances Tammy Abraham (2019-20, 2021-22) - 30 goals in 82 games Gonzalo Higuain (2018-19) - five goals in 19 games Alvaro Morata (2017-18) - 24 scores in 72 appearances Radamel Falcao (2015-16) - a single strike in 12 appearances Fernando Torres (2010-11, 2014-15): 45 scores in one hundred seventy-two matches Franco di Santo (2008-10) - failed to score in 16 games Steve Sidwell (2007-08) - one score in twenty-five matches Khalid Boulahrouz (2006-07) - zero strikes in 20 games A midfielder and defender are among those listed, and some would contend Abraham ended the jinx with his record, while iconic forwards such as Peter Osgood and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink flourished with nine on their back. But Delap was unfazed when questioned about the jinx. "I'm not the type of person [who believes in curses]," he said at the international tournament. "At the end of the day it's a number on the back of your kit. It's just a figure that has always been related to forwards so it's something that I like and there's no added burden."