Delap injury deals blow to Blues | OneFootball

Chelsea forward Liam Delap could be ruled out until December after suffering a hamstring setback in the win over Fulham before the international fixtures.

Delap was forced off inside the opening quarter-hour of the 2-0 victory, with manager Enzo Maresca confirming an absence of 10–12 weeks.

There is optimism the striker may return in November, sparing him surgery and boosting the squad ahead of the Christmas schedule.

The former Ipswich star, a £30m arrival in June, has started all three of Chelsea’s matches this season.

Following his injury, Chelsea recalled Marc Guiu from his loan spell at Sunderland to add depth, a move made on the eve of Nicolas Jackson’s £70.5m switch to Bayern Munich.

Joao Pedro, signed from Brighton earlier this window, is expected to take on the central role under Maresca.

"For us, the only number nine is [Marc] Guiu and Joao [Pedro] can play there, and against Fulham we used Ty [George]," Maresca said.

Delap was Ipswich’s main scorer last term, striking 12 goals in 37 Premier League outings.

Palmer in the frame for Bees derby

Meanwhile, Cole Palmer could feature when Chelsea head to Brentford on Saturday night (20:00 BST).

The England international missed the wins over West Ham and Fulham with a groin problem.

"Cole took part in the session yesterday for the first time, not the entire session," Maresca said.

"We have one more session this afternoon and we are going to try with him to see if he's OK, otherwise he will be out tomorrow.

"He is recovering from an injury. When he is available, we need to manage him because of the amount of games."