Chelsea given Delap injury update as return timeline detailed for £30m striker

After Liam Delap walked off the pitch at the Vitality Stadium this weekend clutching his shoulder in pain, an injury timeline for the Chelsea forward has come to the fore

Chelsea will be missing Liam Delap for a period of six to eight weeks following his injury against Bournemouth. The summer recruit from Ipswich Town had to leave the pitch prematurely during the Blues' 0-0 draw with Bournemouth.

The 22-year-old seemed to have dislocated his shoulder after a clash with Cherries defender Marcos Senesi. He exited the field with his arm in a sling and was subsequently replaced by Marc Guiu.

Having previously suffered a hamstring injury in the win over Fulham earlier in the season, Delap may not return to action until February, based on recent injury projections. As reported by talkSPORT, the former Manchester City player is expected to be side-lined for nearly two months.

This comes as another significant setback for Delap, who has struggled to maintain a consistent run of appearances since his £30million transfer from Portman Road. The England U21 international was starting to hit his stride when he netted the decisive third goal in Chelsea's impressive 3-0 triumph over Barcelona in the Champions League.

Aside from the Club World Cup, his close-range strike against the Catalans marked his first goal for the UEFA Conference League winners. So far this season, he has been restricted to just eight Premier League appearances.

Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca expressed his concern about the injury in his post-match interview. When questioned about Delap's situation, the Italian responded: "Unfortunately he was already out for two months and he has to be out again. We don't know for how long, but it looks quite bad, his shoulder."

Delap's opportunities at Chelsea have been limited, whether due to injuries, fierce competition or disciplinary issues. A hamstring problem sustained against Fulham sidelined him for two months.

His comeback in October proved disastrous when he received two rapid yellow cards for challenges on Yerson Mosquera and Emmanuel Agbadou during a Carabao Cup tie against Wolverhampton Wanderers. Maresca branded the incidents "very stupid" and "embarrassing", prompting Delap to apologise both publicly and privately to his teammates.

While recuperating, Delap may now have the chance to analyse the positions and movements Maresca expects from him. The duo previously collaborated in Manchester City's under-21 championship-winning squad in 2020-21.

Addressing Delap's difficulties last month, the Chelsea manager explained: "Liam is a number nine who needs space, needs to attack in behind and fight. Against teams in a low block, it's more difficult because there is no space to attack."

The striker was close to being a like-for-like replacement for Nicolas Jackson, who departed on loan to Bayern Munich. The Englishman has also faced competition from fellow summer arrival Joao Pedro.

Furthermore, Maresca chose to deploy Pedro Neto as a striker in the triumph over Barcelona, despite having Pedro and Delap available for selection.