Connect with us

Sports

Chelsea double injury setback hurts more than Delap suspension

Published

on


Enzo Maresca was not happy with Liam Delap on Wednesday night.

Only just back from injury for Chelsea‘s Carabao Cup fourth round clash with Wolverhampton Wanderers, the striker will now miss another Premier League match after being sent off at Molineux.

The 22-year-old had missed ten matches in all competitions due to a hamstring injury and will now miss the Premier League clash with fierce London rivals Tottenham Hotspur this weekend.

Maresca said after the game: “After the yellow card, I told him four or five times, keep calm. But Liam is a player inside the pitch, playing the game for himself and he struggles to listen to things around him.

“Very stupid red card that was completely unnecessary. Absolutely deserved. It was a stupid foul. We can avoid that. I completely support the red card.”

Disciplinary problems

enzo maresca

Chelsea have the worst disciplinary record, not only in the English top flight, but across Europe’s top five divisions. Delap’s sending off was the Blues’ fifth of the season in all competitions, with only Spanish side Girona suffering as many red cards.

Chelsea take on Spurs at Stamford Bridge on Saturday, with the game live on Sky Sports at 5.30pm. It is the big game of the weekend, with the two teams expecting to be jostling for Champions League positions come the end of the season.

Without Delap, Maresca is likely to have to call upon Marc Guiu again in the striker role, unless he goes with Joao Pedro as the central striker, although he has hinted already that he does not see the Brazilian playing there.

“Joao Pedro is not a number nine that is going to score 20 goals each year. Joao’s a fantastic player, he’s going to score and give assists but he’s a different kind of nine to ones that score 20 to 25 goals each year like [Robert] Lewandowski, [Kylian] Mbappe or [Erling] Haaland.”

Injury problems

cole palmer chelsea

Delap is added to a list of players Maresca cannot call upon for the derby with Spurs, and while it will be frustrating not to have him available, after just getting him back, there are two, perhaps bigger problems for the clash.

Chelsea’s injury list boasts key names like Cole Palmer, Levi Colwill and Benoit Badiashile already and two of those names are perhaps bigger misses than Delap would be.

Palmer is a hugely influential figure for the Blues, while Colwill is also an integral part of the defence when he is available. Not only that, but both have a perfect record when playing against Tottenham.

Palmer has been involved in all four games against Spurs in the past two seasons, with a 100% record from those matches, scoring three goals and providing two assists.

Colwill missed one of those four through injury, but also has a 100% record as a Chelsea player against Tottenham. He did, however, lose to Spurs while he was on loan at Brighton – a 2-1 defeat in 2023.

Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Sports

West Ham Ready Move For Josh Mulligan

Published

on

By


West Ham United’s relegation from the Premier League is set to trigger several player exits as the Hammers need to balance the books heading into next season.

It is estimated sales between £100m-£150m will be required for the club to clear their debts. Mateus Fernandes is one player attracting major interest from several Premier League sides.

Arsenal, Manchester United and Liverpool have all been linked with the player who has a valuation of £80m.

The Irons need to clarify which players they will allow to leave the club before they can begin to make additions as they look to get out of the Championship at the first time of asking.

And enquiries on some new signings are already being made.

West Ham make enquiry for Josh Mulligan

Josh Mulligan

According to GIVEMESPORT senior football correspondent Ben Jacobs, the Hammers have made an initial enquiry about signing Josh Mulligan from Scottish Premiership side Hibernian.

The 23-year-old joined Hibs last summer and is under contract with the Edinburgh club until 2029.

His season was disrupted by a serious ankle injury back in January which required surgery. He returned for the final two games of the campaign against Rangers and Motherwell.

In recent days, Hibs head coach David Gray described the player as ‘excellent’ and ‘hard-working’ as he praised the midfielder for the manner in which he battled back from his injury.

While West Ham have made an enquiry, there is no formal offer as they continue to assess who they will need to sell this summer.

Gray has been linked with English clubs before, with both Nottingham Forest and Leeds United credited with an interest ahead of the January window.

However, with Mulligan picking up his injury in mid-January, any hopes of a Premier League move were dashed.

Who is West Ham target Josh Mulligan?

Josh Mulligan

Mulligan came through the academy at Scottish club Dundee, and had loan spells at Cove Rangers and Peterhead before becoming a first-team regular.

He made a total of 122 appearances for Dundee, scoring six goals and providing 10 assists. He earned a move to Hibs last summer and played 33 times for the club, with three goals and five assists.

He joined Hibs on a free transfer when his contract at Dundee expired. However, the Easter Road club did pay a compensation package to the Dark Blues as the player came through their academy.

That agreement, according to The Courier, contains a sell-on clause. That could result in Hibs putting a slightly bigger price tag on Mulligan if West Ham decide to proceed with a formal bid.


West Ham winger Jarrod Bowen claps his hands


Danny Dyer Named the Only Two Clubs He’d Allow Jarrod Bowen to Leave West Ham For

Jarrod Bowen has strong family ties in east London, but what will he do now West Ham have been relegated from the Premier League?

Continue Reading

Sports

Newcastle ‘Genuine Contenders’ to Sign James Trafford

Published

on

By


Newcastle United are ‘genuine contenders’ to sign a player from Manchester City this summer, according to TEAMtalk.

The Magpies will be out to improve on last season’s bottom-half Premier League finish. It was a disappointing campaign for the club and manager Eddie Howe.

Newcastle have qualified for the Champions League twice since Howe’s arrival as manager but there will be no European football for the club next term as they look to rebuild.

Some transfer business has already taken place at St James’ Park with Anthony Gordon leaving the north east outfit and joining Barcelona for around £70m.

That fee will boost Newcastle’s funds for incoming signings this summer and one player they have their eye on his City goalkeeper James Trafford.

James Trafford keen on Newcastle United switch

james trafford

The goalkeeper joined City from Burnley last summer but his ambitions of being number one at the club were dashed when Pep Guardiola made a late summer swoop for Gianluigi Donnarumma.

The ex-AC Milan stopper was signed for just £26m after surprisingly leaving Paris Saint-Germain.

According to TEAMtalk, Trafford views a move to Newcastle positively and is attracted to the project at the club.

He is also attracted to the prospect of becoming a key player for the Magpies, which would also help him as he eyes the number one spot with England.

Newcastle have competition from several Premier League rivals for Trafford with Aston Villa previously linked, but only if Emi Martinez moves on.

Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur have also been credited with an interest.

Newcastle need to upgrade goalkeeping department

nick pope

Newcastle goalkeeper Nick Pope turned 34 in April and is approaching the final years of his career.

Trafford is still only 23 and has his best years ahead of him. He is unlikely to usurp Donnarumma for the number one spot at City and is keen to move somewhere he can play regularly.

He is on wages of £100,000-a-week while City are ready to demand £40m to sell him this summer. The former Burnley player made the move to the Etihad Stadium for around £30m about 12 months ago.

Newcastle did have an offer accepted by Burnley for Trafford but City had a matching rights clause in the player’s contract after initially selling him to Burnley.

With the Magpies’ offer accepted, the matching rights agreement allowed City to swoop. They will now want to make a profit on the player before going into the market for a new number two.

The Magpies are in the market for a new goalkeeper after opting against a permanent move for Aaron Ramsdale, who will return to Southampton following the end of his season-long loan at St James’ Park.


Anthony Gordon Barcelona


Newcastle Open Talks to Sign ‘Fastest Player in the Bundesliga’ to Replace Gordon

Newcastle have opened talks for a top target.

Continue Reading

Sports

Tottenham in Talks to Sign Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford

Published

on

By


Tottenham have reportedly opened talks about signing a Manchester United star ahead of the summer transfer window.

Spurs are certainly not messing around in the summer market as they have all already agreed to bring in two new additions.

GIVEMESPORT understands that Andy Robertson and Marcos Senesi are both set to join Tottenham after they secured their Premier League status at the end of the season.

Robertson and Senesi are set to leave Liverpool and Bournemouth, respectively, following the expiration of their contracts, and Tottenham have acted fast to secure their signatures.

Tottenham will need further reinforcements after the defensive duo, and it appears they are also in the market to sign a new attacker.


Tottenham manager Roberto De Zerbi celebrates win at Aston Villa


Fabrizio Romano: ‘World-Class’ Star Giving Priority to Joining Tottenham This Summer

Huge news for Tottenham.

Tottenham Open Attacker Transfer Talks

Roberto De Zerbi

According to reports in Spain, Tottenham are among the sides who have opened talks ahead of a potential deal to sign Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford in the summer transfer window.

Rashford spent the 2025/2026 season on loan at La Liga side Barcelona, who have the option to turn the loan deal permanent.

After securing the signing of Anthony Gordon from Newcastle, it remains to be seen whether Barcelona will also look to bring Rashford back permanently.

The report claims that Rashford has no interest in joining Tottenham, with three Premier League sides keen on securing his signature.

If Barcelona opt against signing Rashford permanently, it will be interesting to see if his stance on joining Tottenham changes.

Rashford Might Need to Reduce Wages

FC Barcelona's Marcus Rashford holds a football

If Rashford wants to find a new club in the summer transfer window on a permanent basis, he might need to consider dropping his wage demands. The English forward reportedly earns in the region of £325,000 a week, but his performances have certainly not warranted that salary over the last few years.

It feels unlikely that a club like Tottenham would be willing to pay him this much, while other Premier League clubs could struggle to justify it too.

There’s no doubt Rashford would be a smart option for Tottenham, but being without European football could harm them in the race to secure his signature.

Continue Reading

Trending