Liam Delap injury: Enzo Maresca confirms major Chelsea blow after double transfer decision | OneFootball

Summer signing joins Cole Palmer and Levi Colwill on the sidelines after Blues sanction exits of Christopher Nkunku and Nicolas Jackson

Rotten luck: Liam Delap suffered a hamstring injury early on in Chelsea’s controversial win over Fulham

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Enzo Maresca has suggested that Liam Delap could face as long as eight weeks out injured, in what comes as another major blow to Chelsea.

It remains to be seen how long Delap will be sidelined for and whether Chelsea will look to bolster numbers further.

Delap pulled up and held his hamstring just 15 minutes into Saturday’s 2-0 win over Fulham. He was replaced early on by Tyrique George: another attacker Chelsea are considering moving on before the transfer deadline at 7pm BST on Monday evening.

Chelsea boss Maresca told TNT Sports after the match that “this type of injury” can mean “six to eight weeks” out of action, when asked about Delap’s setback.

“Hamstring, it was full speed,” the Italian said. “Hopefully it’s not long, but this kind of case, this kind of injury, it always can be six, eight weeks.”

Quizzed further on the injury in his post-match press conference and asked if Chelsea may need to sign another striker before the deadline, Maresca said: “Liam's injury doesn't look good in terms of, he was full speed, hamstring, so that requires, like always, weeks.

“And then in terms of another striker, to be honest, we just finished the game from the changing room and came here for the press conference. So now after, when we finish, we're going to sit and we'll see if we take any decision. That's all.”

Delap joins Cole Palmer, Levi Colwill, Romeo Lavia and Benoit Badiashile in the treatment room, with Moises Caicedo having also been struggling, with Chelsea seemingly already feeling the effects of a busy summer in which they won the inaugural expanded Club World Cup in the United States.

Asked if the injuries were as a result of a short pre-season following that competition, Maresca said: “I said before the season started that unfortunately I don't have any answer, because it's the first time that you have a competition during the summer, so you don't know.

“I don't know. Not me, no sports science, not any doctor can help us to say we're going to have this problem or this problem. We don't know.

“It's something new and unfortunately it happened. I said yesterday in the press conference, I think it's not random that Levi, Moi [Caicedo], Cole, today Liam. It is what it is.”