Chelsea Confidential: Liam Delap's World Cup lifeline from Thomas Tuchel revealed, the unusual new-age treatment being trialled at Cobham and who's winning the battle between Estevao and Pedro Neto

Thomas Tuchel is expected to contact Liam Delap to discuss what he needs to do to earn his first England call-up, Confidential has learned.

Delap recently returned from a hamstring injury which sidelined him for two months but the Chelsea striker is hoping a good second half of the season can place him in contention for this summer's World Cup, which is now a little more than six months away.

The 22-year-old has not yet debuted internationally but representing his country is a dream of his, and Tuchel faces a dilemma over which strikers to take to North America amid a lack of obvious deputies for Harry Kane .

Confidential has it on good authority that Delap is among those on Tuchel’s long list of potential squad members across all positions, though the former Chelsea manager has never spoken at length publicly about Delap.

His competition includes Ollie Watkins , Ivan Toney , Dominic Solanke, Danny Welbeck and others, though none of those players is considered to have a guaranteed place on the plane.

England’s next camp is scheduled for March and it is understood Tuchel intends on speaking with Delap before then, to outline what he wants to see from him with Chelsea.

Chelsea striker Liam Delap is in contention for England's World Cup squad next summer despite a slow start to life at Stamford Bridge

Delap won 12 caps at England Under 21s level and scored three times, but is yet to make his senior bow

Delap is yet to score in the Premier League since his £30million move from Ipswich, having been sidelined for two months with a hamstring injury

Clearly, strikers are judged principally on goals, with Delap yet to score for Chelsea in the Premier League after missing most of this campaign due to injury.

He scored 12 goals in 37 games for Ipswich last season before joining the Blues for £30million in the summer to be reunited with Enzo Maresca. Delap played under Maresca at Manchester City, scoring 24 times in a single season for their development side. He has also been capped 12 times by England's Under 21s.

Tuchel has been spotted at the odd Chelsea game, such as the 1-0 win over Benfica in the Champions League and 2-2 draw with Brentford in the Premier League. Both of those visits were while Delap was injured, but we are likely to see Tuchel at a Blues fixture again soon.

ESTEVAO STARTS, ESTEVAO SCORES... BUT WILL NETO FACE BURNLEY INSTEAD?

Estevao Willian has scored in each of his last six starts for club and country, which is a statistic that will not be lost on Chelsea as they prepare to travel to Burnley in the Premier League on Saturday.

While Maresca does not need to factor in Estevao's lengthy travel time for once – Brazil played their two games in this international break in England and France – he will have to consider the fact the 18-year-old played 173 of the 180 minutes.

My guess is Pedro Neto will start on Chelsea’s right-hand side at Burnley over Estevao, especially as Maresca appreciates his added willingness to help defend counter-attacks. Neto is in training after skipping international duty with Portugal to overcome a niggling issue, and the 25-year-old has started every Premier League game this season.

There is no containing the excitement surrounding Estevao. Brazil had Rodrygo, Vinicius Junior and Matheus Cunha on the pitch against Tunisia on Tuesday and yet when they won their penalty, it was Chelsea’s teenager who stepped up to score emphatically.

One good omen for the Blues ahead of their trip to Turf Moor is that they are the league's third-best team away from home this season (they are 12th-best at home).

Blues and Brazil wonderkid Estevao Willian (left) has scored in each of his last six starts for club and country

But Pedro Neto is still likely to start on Chelsea’s right-hand side at Burnley in his place

Meanwhile, Chelsea had a largely positive international break from their perspective as they benefitted from good ongoing relationships with national teams.

Neto and Enzo Fernandez were allowed to avoid duty with Portugal and Argentina respectively, while others were not overused, including Reece James as he skipped England's win over Albania. Ecuador and Spain didn’t get the memo, mind, using Moises Caicedo and Marc Cucurella in back-to-back full matches respectively.

REALITY BEHIND THOSE ROMEO RUMOURS

There were reports this week that Chelsea offered Romeo Lavia to Manchester United during their summer talks over the £40m arrival of Alejandro Garnacho.

The version I have heard from sources is that it was actually Jason Wilcox – United’s director of football who previously worked at Manchester City and Southampton, Lavia’s two clubs before Chelsea – who had asked about the 21-year-old’s availability. Any conversations with United and others at that time will have seen a few names brought up by both sides, not just Lavia’s.

It is hard not to have sympathy for Lavia. He wants to play and when he does, he often looks like he belongs at the highest level. Yet now that he is injured again, a fair few Chelsea fans have suggested their club should seek to move on to a more reliable midfielder.

We will need to wait to see what happens in future windows and whether Chelsea are given a decision to make by a club like United. Right now, the Blues are fully supporting the Belgium international in his latest comeback and are looking forward to his return to the field.

I remember covering Maresca’s first pre-season tour in July-August 2024. Lavia was the only player to start all six of Chelsea's friendlies in the United States and London, and I was fortunate to get to interview him in Charlotte, North Carolina. I asked him what his dream season would be. ‘Not to miss any games,’ he said.

Hopefully, he can make his return in a way similar to James, Chelsea’s captain who will have been injury-free for more than a year by the end of this week.

It is hard not to have sympathy for Romeo Lavia after all his injury woe. He wants to play and when he does, he often looks like he belongs at the highest level

TERRIFIC TYRIQUE NEARING BIG JANUARY

I didn’t get to watch either of the England Under 21s' games over the last week, but I’m told by those who attended those fixtures against the Republic of Ireland (a 2-0 win) and Slovakia (a 4-0 win) that Tyrique George was the most impressive performer for our Young Lions.

It should come as no surprise that Confidential has also heard there is a long list of admirers for George in the build-up to January. Chelsea agreed a £22m fee with Fulham to sell the 19-year-old in the summer, only for that deal to fall through on deadline day.

England Under 21s manager Lee Carsley previously told my colleague Nathan Salt that George needs his ‘chance to play’ and, naturally, with the teenager occasionally finding himself bumped from Maresca’s matchday squads at Chelsea, that looks likelier elsewhere.

Meanwhile, by my calculations, Shim Mheuka is up to 24 goals for club and country this season after his latest brace for England’s Under 19s and we are not even at the end of November.

Similar to George, the 18-year-old has struggled for first-team opportunities with Chelsea this term after being regularly used in the Conference League last campaign.

There will be no shortage of suitors for Chelsea youngster Tyrique George in the January transfer window

Shim Mheuka, 18, is already up to 24 goals for club and country this season after his latest brace for England’s Under 19s

BLUES STAYING SCHTUM ON BIG VOTE

Chelsea are not disclosing which way they intend on voting this Friday, when Premier League clubs decide whether to introduce a new controversial salary cap.

Known as ‘anchoring’, the idea is sides would be limited to spending up to five times the prize money and broadcast revenue paid to the team that finishes bottom of the table.

Based on the 2023-24 season, when Sheffield United finished 20th and received £109.5m, that would be £550m.

Back in April 2024, 16 Premier League clubs voted in favour of exploring measures for a cap on spending. Three were against it, while it is understood Chelsea abstained from voting at the time. The Blues are now keeping their counsel before the proposed big vote.

WINNER WINNER, CHELSEA GET DEINNER

Chelsea agreeing a deal to sign Deinner Ordonez – the 16-year-old defender from Independiente del Valle, Caicedo’s former club – is a further reminder that they are not only pursuing the attacking superstars of tomorrow.

They want to source the best prospects in all positions. Ordonez has signed a pre-agreement as a precursor to a long-term contract once he turns 18, and is likely to pay the odd visit to Cobham in the build-up to his big move.

Chelsea have agreed a deal to sign Deinner Ordonez (left) – a 16-year-old defender from Ecuador's Independiente del Valle

NEW TREATMENT TRAINING AT COBHAM

Confidential has heard that Chelsea’s physiotherapy team used this international break to have a 'dry needling' training event at Cobham, in which the club's physios were shown in their rehab room how best to use the treatment on hamstrings by an external osteopath.

I won't pretend to know the ins and outs of what it involves exactly, but apparently it is used to ease muscle tension, reduce pain and improve mobility by stimulating nerves and increasing blood flow.

Anyway, were I playing for Chelsea, I might expect the odd needle in my near future.