Liam Delap has not hit the ground running at Chelsea, but if we're being completely honest, his poor showing is nowhere near as bad as his fellow summer arrival, Jamie Gittens.
Delap was signed to replace Nicolas Jackson, but instead, Joao Pedro is having a more fruitful time bagging the goals for Chelsea. In many ways, Delap falling down the pecking order was exacerbated by a player above him shining brighter. Jamie Gittens cannot use that excuse.
Chelsea signing Jamie Gittens looks more confusing by the week
Signing from Borussia Dortmund in the summer, Jamie Gittens has made 27 appearances across all competitions for Chelsea. In 27 appearances, he has returned just one goal and five assists.
Primarily playing on the LW, it can be argued that Pedro Neto is a better choice in this position. However, that shouldn't prevent Jamie Gittens too much, considering Neto's poor availability record.
Gittens has been given chances at Chelsea, but he has not made the most of them. His time in a Chelsea shirt is by no means over, but he needs to do something pretty special to get on the right side of Liam Rosenior and the Chelsea faithful.
Ask any Dortmund fan, and they'll tell you that something special is waiting to be unleashed in Gittens. After all, there must be a reason why Chelsea brought him in, particularly during a time they were focusing on building for the future.
However, the Premier League is a different kettle of fish from any other league in Europe. What is considered special elsewhere might just become redundant in the Premier League. Unfortunately, many young players have suffered this fate, with Chelsea being the main culprits.
Nevertheless, the season is still young. Chelsea still has many important games coming up, and as Liam Rosenior turns his attention to squad rotation in the final portion of the season, there's no stopping Jamie Gittens from turning around his fortunes.
Despite Gittens being a worse signing than Delap, you could argue that Gittens has a better shot at making it before the end of this campaign. Delap is fighting a losing battle against Pedro, but Liam Rosenior appears to be more open to rotating his winger options.
After all, the last few games have seen Rosenior between Neto, Alejandro Garnacho, and no left-winger at all. This position is very much open to improvement, as great as Pedro Neto has been.