Striker Liam Delap is returning from a hamstring injury at a time of need for Chelsea.
The Blues suffered a 2-1 defeat against unexpected challengers Sunderland at Stamford Bridge on Saturday, with manager Enzo Maresca attributing "insufficient imagination" and his team's delivery being "below standard".
Chelsea's forwards are struggling for goals and goal contributions as Delap returns in the EFL Cup against bottom-half 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 said the emerging talent will be phased in "slowly", and the recent acquisition's comeback is crucial for a team facing scrutiny over their inconsistency, which has left the domestic cups their best opportunity of winning a trophy this season.
Delap to Take Pressure Off Joao Pedro
Chelsea signed Delap from Ipswich Town for a £30 million fee despite interest from Old Trafford club, the Magpies and Goodison Park team.
Yet the England Under-21s forward was below expensive recruit Joao Pedro in the pecking order at this global competition - and with solid justification.
Joao Pedro found the net three times in three matches as Chelsea claimed the first edition in the America. The Brazil striker scored another two and three goal contributions in his opening quartet of league fixtures after joining from Brighton.
More lately, however, Joao Pedro has not scored in his previous seven fixtures. Maresca said he is one of three squad members - along with midfielders Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo - who presently require to be "shielded".
When questioned about Joao Pedro's dip in form, Maresca remarked: "Certainly the fitness aspect is vital. When you are not fully fit it's difficult to compete, notably in this league."
"Joao Pedro is not a number nine that is going to reach twenty strikes every season. Joao's a excellent footballer, he's going to get goals and give assists but he's a different kind of nine to ones that score 20 to 25 goals each year like the Bayern legend, the French superstar or the Norwegian goal machine."
Wider Problems in Chelsea's Attack
Chelsea deal with wider issues beyond their forwards and Joao Pedro's scoreless streak.
Forward Cole Palmer has played two full matches all term and is not expected return from a groin problem until December.
Attacking midfielder Jamie Bynoe-Gittens, signed from Borussia Dortmund for a £52m package, has no goals and a single assist in ten games. Alejandro Garnacho, a £40 million signing from Manchester United, has one score in seven games and forced an own goal against Benfica.
Estevao Willian, 18, has entertained since arriving from Palmeiras for a fee rising to £51m, but has merely two scores and a single assist - paralleling homegrown talent Tyrique George.
Forward Marc Guiu and loan signing Facundo Buonanotte have a single strike apiece.
Marc Cucurella, who notched seven from left-back last campaign, is without a goal this season. Winger Pedro Neto has a single strike and two setups in his previous two fixtures, but prior to that scored only once in the opening ten matches.
After thirteen fixtures in various cups no striker has over two strikes, with midfielders Fernandez and Caicedo Chelsea's equal leading marksmen with four.
Asked whether a shortage of clinical finishers means duties need distributing, Maresca commented: "Absolutely, yes. We said many times that the front five at the front, we need six, seven, eight, nine, 10 goals each, in the fashion we managed last term."
Maresca has discovered methods to be competitive despite attacking inconsistency. Chelsea are second place for set-piece goals in the English top division, one behind Arsenal. In moreover, the Stamford Bridge side are the initial club to have 10 different scorers in the Premier League this season.
Will Chelsea's Number Nine Curse Be Broken?
Some Chelsea fans think the center-forward number - assigned to Delap in the transfer window - is cursed. It had been unoccupied since last year, and footballers who wore it since the mid-2000s have struggled for goals, including:
- Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (2022-23) - three strikes in 21 games
- Romelu Lukaku (2021-22) - 15 scores 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 scores in 72 appearances
- Radamel Falcao (2015-16) - one goal in 12 appearances
- Fernando Torres (2010-11, 2014-15): 45 goals in 172 games
- Franco di Santo (2008-10) - no goals in sixteen matches
- Steve Sidwell (2007-08) - a single strike in 25 games
- Khalid Boulahrouz (2006-07) - no goals in twenty matches
A central player and defensive specialist are among those listed, and some would contend Abraham lifted the hoodoo with his record, while famous attackers such as Peter Osgood and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink thrived with the number nine.
But Delap was unmoved when questioned about the hoodoo. "I don't believe [who believes in curses]," he said at the international tournament.
"In the final analysis it's a figure on the jersey of your uniform. It's just a digit that has historically been connected to attackers so it's something that I enjoy and there's zero expectation."
