Overview

• Delap exited after 13 minutes of the 2-0 win over Fulham with a hamstring problem and went straight down the tunnel after treatment.
• Enzo Maresca said the injury requires weeks on the sidelines and told broadcasters it is expected to be roughly a 6–8 week absence.
• Maresca noted that operating with two strikers becomes insufficient when one is out for weeks, leaving the squad light in attack.
• Chelsea recently loaned Nicolas Jackson to Bayern Munich, a departure that further reduces center-forward options alongside Delap’s injury.
• Maresca said Chelsea will seek a defender after Levi Colwill’s cruciate tear and did not rule out entering the market for another striker, with Cole Palmer also out with a groin issue.