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Striker Liam Delap is recovering from a muscle issue at a important period for Chelsea.

The West London club were beaten 2-1 against surprise package Sunderland at Stamford Bridge on recently, with boss Enzo Maresca blaming "insufficient imagination" and his side's crossing being "subpar".

Chelsea's attackers are finding it hard to score and goal contributions as Delap makes his comeback in the EFL Cup against bottom-half Wolves on midweek (19:45 GMT), having been absent for 10 matches since picking up the problem in the victory over Fulham in the summer.

Maresca commented the emerging talent will be slowly integrated "gradually", and the recent acquisition's comeback is crucial for a club facing questions over their inconsistency, which has left the domestic cups their most realistic chance of securing honors this season.

Delap to Take Pressure Off Joao Pedro

Chelsea signed Delap from the Championship side for £30m despite pursuit by Old Trafford club, St James' Park side and Goodison Park team.

Yet the England Under-21s forward was second to £55 million acquisition Joao Pedro in the selection hierarchy at this global competition - and with good reason.

Joao Pedro scored three goals in three matches as Chelsea claimed the first edition in the America. The Seleção attacker added two more goals and three assists in his first four Premier League games after arriving from Brighton.

More recently, however, Joao Pedro has failed to score in his past seven matches. Maresca stated he is one of three players - along with central players Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo - who at the moment demand to be "shielded".

When questioned about Joao Pedro's dip in form, Maresca remarked: "Certainly the fitness aspect is important. When you are not at peak condition it's difficult to compete, notably in this division."

"Joao Pedro is not a traditional striker that is going to reach twenty strikes every season. Joao's a excellent footballer, he's going to find the net and give assists but he's a distinctive forward to players who get 20 to 25 goals every season like [Robert] Lewandowski, the French superstar or the City striker."

Additional Concerns in Chelsea's Forward Line

Chelsea confront broader problems in addition to their forwards and Joao Pedro's drought.

Forward Cole Palmer has played two full matches all season and is not expected return from a lower body issue until next month.

Wide player Jamie Bynoe-Gittens, signed from Borussia Dortmund for a £52m package, has failed to score and one assist in ten appearances. Alejandro Garnacho, a £40 million signing from Manchester United, has one goal in seven games and caused an own goal against Benfica.

Estevao Willian, eighteen, has entertained since joining from Palmeiras for a potential £51 million deal, but has just two strikes and one setup - equaling homegrown talent Tyrique George.

Striker Marc Guiu and Brighton loanee Facundo Buonanotte have a single strike apiece.

Marc Cucurella, who got seven from defensive position last campaign, is without a goal this season. Wide man Pedro Neto has a single strike and two setups in his last two games, but earlier got only one goal in the opening ten matches.

After thirteen fixtures in every tournament no attacker has over two strikes, with central players Fernandez and Caicedo Chelsea's equal leading marksmen with four goals.

Queried whether a lack of natural goalscorers means goals must come from multiple sources, Maresca said: "Definitely, yes. We said many times that the quintet of attackers at the offense, we need six, seven, eight, nine, 10 goals each, in the manner we achieved last season."

Maresca has discovered methods to challenge despite goal-scoring variability. Chelsea are runner-up in set-piece goals in the Premier League, one behind Arsenal. In addition, the West London club are the first team to have 10 different scorers in the first division this season.

Can Chelsea's Striker Jinx End?

Some Chelsea fans think the number nine shirt - claimed by Delap in the summer - is jinxed. It had been available since recently, and footballers who wore it since 2006 have found scoring difficult, including:

• Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (2022-23) - a trio of scores in 21 appearances
• Romelu Lukaku (2021-22) - fifteen strikes in fifty-eight matches
• Tammy Abraham (2019-20, 2021-22) - 30 goals in 82 games
• Gonzalo Higuain (2018-19) - five strikes in 19 games
• Alvaro Morata (2017-18) - twenty-four strikes in seventy-two matches
• Radamel Falcao (2015-16) - a single strike 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 appearances
• Khalid Boulahrouz (2006-07) - zero strikes in twenty matches

A midfielder and defender are part of this selection, and some would argue Abraham ended the jinx with his achievement, while famous attackers such as Peter Osgood and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink thrived with the striker's jersey.

But Delap was unconcerned when asked about the hoodoo. "I'm not one [who believes in curses]," he stated at the global competition.

"At the end of the day it's a figure on the jersey of your kit. It's just a figure that has historically been connected to forwards so it's something that I enjoy and there's zero expectation."