Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca has confirmed striker Liam Delap is back in training and eyeing a return to competitive action before the end of the month.
Delap went down with a hamstring injury in late August and has missed the last nine games in all competitions, but the summer signing has managed to stay on track in his injury recovery and is now back in training.
Saturday’s visit from Sunderland is clearly too soon for Delap, but Maresca told his pre-match press conference that Wednesday’s Carabao Cup fourth-round meeting with Wolverhampton Wanderers could be a sensible target.
“Liam took part in the session yesterday with the team for the first time, so he’s not going to be available for tomorrow’s game, but probably for the next match,” Maresca explained. “He can be available.”
Delap’s imminent return could provide a huge boost to a Chelsea side which has struggled in front of goal in his absence. João Pedro, another summer signing, has been forced to tweak his role to help cover for the Englishman, which has led to a drop in his output.
Enzo, Estêvão Hailed for ‘Proving Team Spirit’ in Ajax Win
Pedro should be well-rested for Saturday’s meeting with Sunderland after being forced to sit out the 5–1 win over Ajax through suspension.
Chelsea clearly had no issues finding the back of the net against the struggling Dutch outfit. In a game full of plenty of highlights, one of the best moments came as captain Enzo Fernández sought out Estêvão to give the young Brazilian the chance to take a penalty which his quick feet had won just moments earlier. Estêvão made no mistake from 12 yards.
“It’s very, very good,” Maresca reflected. “I told the players after the game that for sure we were very happy about the winning, about the three points against Ajax.
“But the main thing about that game was Enzo, when he gave the ball to Estêvão we got to show how is the team in this moment, how they are all together in terms of togetherness, in terms of effort and this is what we need if we want to try to do something important.”
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Enzo Maresca Confirms Potential Liam Delap Return Date.