Delap's journey to the top accelerates
But he's still developing
If Chelsea do sign Liam Delap they have to understand that he is a good finisher, improving promisingly, but far from the finished article yet. Still only 22, Delap will mature into an accomplished centre-forward but is still developing. He needs patience from the club and the support as well as service from his old Manchester City and England Under-21s friend, Cole Palmer.
Other clubs are inevitably interested in such a hungry, dedicated talent, especially at £30m, but Chelsea seem to be leading the chase. All this talk around Chelsea about needing a seasoned, serial goalscorer, a striker more reliable than Nicolas Jackson, is totally understandable. Jackson’s clumsy second touch when through on Real Betis’ goal had Chelsea fans rolling their eyes again and confirmed why Chelsea hunt a more reliable finisher.
It’s hardly a new debate at the Bridge. For every Didier Drogba, Gianluca Vialli and a youthful Tammy Abraham (30 goals in 82 appearances), there has been – deep breath - Chris Sutton, Alvaro Morata, Gonzalo Higuain, Hernan Crespo, Radamel Falcao, Franco Di Santo, Mateja Kezman, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, even Romelu Lukaku. (Fernando Torres gets mentioned but he did win the Champions League at Chelsea). Will Delap, who wore 19 at Ipswich, take the supposedly “cursed” No 9 shirt?
Delap has all the qualities, physically and mentally, to succeed but needs time. Chelsea’s policy is buy young and develop the player as a footballer and a financial asset. That’s great, and logical in the age of PSR, but requires patience. Delap is confident but now comes under full scrutiny by fans as well as the more intense media spotlight, especially in London and especially as he moves closer this year towards an England debut.
Along with the financial attraction of Chelsea, Delap will be playing in the Champions League, working again with Enzo Maresca who coached him at City, and renew his Under-21 partnership with Palmer (who was No 10 to Delap’s 9 in the 9-1 thrashing of Serbia in 2023).
Chelsea are getting a great deal. They are spending only £30m to trigger the release clause (plus substantial wages) for an English signing (which usually comes with an additional cost as useful for quotas). Delap grew into the Premier League this season, scored 12 goals in a struggling side, and will in all probability be a senior England international by the end of the year, and be worth far more.