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Attacker Liam Delap is coming back from a hamstring injury at a important period for Chelsea.

The Blues were beaten 2-1 against unexpected challengers Sunderland at Stamford Bridge on Saturday, with boss Enzo Maresca attributing "insufficient imagination" and his team's delivery being "not the best".

Chelsea's forwards are finding it hard to score and goal contributions as Delap returns in the League Cup against lowly Wolves on midweek (prime time), having sat out 10 fixtures since sustaining the injury in the success over Fulham in August.

Maresca said the young striker will be gradually introduced "slowly", and the recent acquisition's return is crucial for a team facing criticism over their unpredictability, which has left the national tournaments their most realistic chance of claiming silverware this campaign.

Delap to Ease Burden On Joao Pedro

Chelsea brought in Delap from Ipswich Town for thirty million pounds despite attention from Old Trafford club, St James' Park side and Everton.

Yet the Three Lions prospect was behind £55m signing 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 claimed the first edition in the United States. The Brazil striker added two more goals and three assists in his opening quartet of league fixtures after joining from Brighton.

More lately, however, Joao Pedro has been goalless in his previous seven fixtures. Maresca revealed he is one of three players - along with engine room operators Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo - who currently need to be "shielded".

When queried about Joao Pedro's dip in form, Maresca commented: "For sure the physical part is vital. When you are not 100% it's challenging to excel, particularly in this division."

"Joao Pedro is not a traditional striker that is going to net twenty times each year. Joao's a fantastic player, he's going to score and provide assists but he's a alternative type of striker to ones that score 20 to 25 goals every season like the Bayern legend, [Kylian] Mbappe or the City striker."

Additional Concerns in Chelsea's Attack

Chelsea confront additional challenges apart from their forwards and Joao Pedro's drought.

Attacker Cole Palmer has featured for ninety minutes twice all campaign and is not anticipated to feature from a groin problem until the winter.

Attacking midfielder Jamie Bynoe-Gittens, brought in from Borussia Dortmund for a fee rising to £52m, has zero strikes and a single assist in ten games. Alejandro Garnacho, a £40m acquisition from Manchester United, has one goal in seven games and forced an own goal against Benfica.

Estevao Willian, eighteen, has shown promise since arriving from Palmeiras for a potential £51 million deal, but has merely two scores and a single assist - paralleling homegrown talent Tyrique George.

Striker Marc Guiu and Brighton loanee Facundo Buonanotte have one goal each.

Marc Cucurella, who scored seven from left-back last season, is without a goal this term. Attacking player Pedro Neto has a single strike and two goal contributions in his previous two fixtures, but before that scored only once in the initial ten fixtures.

After thirteen games in every tournament no striker has over two strikes, with engine room operators Fernandez and Caicedo Chelsea's shared top goalscorers with four goals.

Questioned whether a absence of prolific strikers means responsibility must be shared, Maresca said: "Definitely, yes. We repeatedly stated that the quintet of attackers at the front, we need multiple goals per player, in the fashion we managed last season."

Maresca has discovered methods to challenge despite attacking inconsistency. Chelsea are runner-up in dead-ball situations in the top flight, one behind Arsenal. In moreover, the Blues are the pioneering side to have 10 different scorers in the first division this season.

Will Chelsea's Number Nine Curse Be Broken?

Some Chelsea supporters feel the striker's jersey - assigned to Delap in the transfer window - is jinxed. It had been available since recently, and players who sported it since the mid-2000s have had goal droughts, including:

• Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (2022-23) - a trio of scores in 21 appearances
• Romelu Lukaku (2021-22) - 15 goals in fifty-eight matches
• Tammy Abraham (2019-20, 2021-22) - 30 scores in 82 games
• Gonzalo Higuain (2018-19) - five strikes in 19 games
• Alvaro Morata (2017-18) - 24 goals in 72 appearances
• Radamel Falcao (2015-16) - a single strike in 12 appearances
• Fernando Torres (2010-11, 2014-15): 45 scores in 172 appearances
• Franco di Santo (2008-10) - zero strikes in 16 appearances
• Steve Sidwell (2007-08) - a single strike in twenty-five matches
• Khalid Boulahrouz (2006-07) - failed to score in 20 games

A engine room operator and defensive specialist are part of this selection, and some would argue Abraham lifted the hoodoo with his performance, while iconic forwards such as Peter Osgood and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink excelled with nine on their back.

But Delap was unfazed when queried about the jinx. "I'm not one [who believes in curses]," he commented at the Club World Cup.

"Ultimately it's a number on the back of your kit. It's just a number that has always been related to strikers so it's something that I appreciate and there's no added burden."