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Attacker 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 home ground on the weekend, with manager Enzo Maresca blaming "insufficient imagination" and his side's crossing being "below standard".

Chelsea's strikers are finding it hard to score and key passes as Delap makes his comeback in the Carabao Cup against struggling Wolves on Wednesday (prime time), having been absent for 10 matches since picking up the problem in the victory over Fulham in the summer.

Maresca stated the emerging talent will be phased in "slowly", and the new recruit's comeback is vital for a club facing scrutiny over their inconsistency, which has left the domestic cups their best opportunity of winning a trophy this term.

Delap to Take Pressure Off Joao Pedro

Chelsea signed Delap from the Championship side for a £30 million fee despite attention from Manchester United, St James' Park side and Everton.

Yet the young English striker was below £55m signing Joao Pedro in the selection hierarchy at this recent international tournament - and with valid cause.

Joao Pedro registered a trio of strikes in three outings as Chelsea won the inaugural tournament in the USA. The Brazil striker added two more goals and three goal contributions in his opening quartet of league fixtures after moving from the Seagulls.

More of late, however, Joao Pedro has failed to score in his last seven games. Maresca said he is one of three players - along with engine room operators Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo - who presently require to be "protected".

When queried about Joao Pedro's dip in form, Maresca said: "For sure the physical part is vital. When you are not fully fit it's hard to perform, especially in this competition."

"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 find the net and provide assists but he's a distinctive forward to ones that score 20 to 25 goals every season like [Robert] Lewandowski, the French superstar or the City striker."

Additional Concerns in Chelsea's Forward Line

Chelsea deal with broader problems apart from their strikers and Joao Pedro's drought.

Winger Cole Palmer has completed two games all campaign and is unlikely to be back from a groin problem until the winter.

Wide player Jamie Bynoe-Gittens, signed from Borussia Dortmund for a fee rising to £52m, has zero strikes and one goal contribution in 10 matches. Alejandro Garnacho, a £40m recruit from Manchester United, has a single strike in seven matches and caused an own goal against Benfica.

Estevao Willian, 18, has impressed since joining from Palmeiras for a £51m package, but has only two goals and one setup - matching homegrown talent Tyrique George.

Striker Marc Guiu and loan signing Facundo Buonanotte have one goal each.

Marc Cucurella, who notched seven from left-back last campaign, is still to score this term. Winger Pedro Neto has one goal and two setups in his past two matches, but earlier got only one goal in the first 10 games.

After thirteen fixtures in various cups no striker has more than two goals, with engine room operators Fernandez and Caicedo Chelsea's joint top scorers with four goals.

Queried whether a lack of natural goalscorers means duties need distributing, Maresca stated: "Absolutely, yes. We repeatedly stated that the quintet of attackers at the front, we need multiple goals per player, in the fashion we managed last campaign."

Maresca has found ways to be competitive despite goal-scoring variability. Chelsea are second place for set-piece goals in the Premier League, one less than Arsenal. In moreover, the Blues are the first team to have ten distinct net-finders in the Premier League this term.

Is the Number Nine Hoodoo About to Lift?

Some Chelsea supporters feel the number nine shirt - assigned to Delap in the off-season - is hexed. It had been unoccupied since 2023, and footballers who wore it since 2006 have found scoring difficult, including:

• Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (2022-23) - three strikes in 21 appearances
• Romelu Lukaku (2021-22) - fifteen strikes in fifty-eight matches
• Tammy Abraham (2019-20, 2021-22) - 30 goals in eighty-two matches
• Gonzalo Higuain (2018-19) - five strikes in 19 games
• 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): forty-five strikes in one hundred seventy-two matches
• Franco di Santo (2008-10) - failed to score in 16 appearances
• Steve Sidwell (2007-08) - a single strike in 25 games
• Khalid Boulahrouz (2006-07) - failed to score in 20 games

A midfielder and backline player are included in this group, and some would contend Abraham lifted the hoodoo with his record, while famous attackers such as Peter Osgood and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink excelled with the striker's jersey.

But Delap was unmoved when queried about the hoodoo. "I don't believe [who believes in curses]," he said at the international tournament.

"At the end of the day it's a digit on the shirt of your uniform. It's just a digit that has always been related to forwards so it's something that I enjoy and there's no added burden."