Chelsea had a close-up view of Liam Delap’s abilities during their match against Ipswich Town on Monday.
Enzo Maresca’s team fell to a 2-0 defeat, with Delap converting a first-half penalty to get on the scoresheet.
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The Ipswich Town forward has been shining in the Premier League ..Continue Reading
The 21-year-old joined Ipswich from Manchester City this summer for a fee of £20 million.
The England Under-21 international signed a five-year contract, and his string of impressive performances has already sparked rumors of another move.
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Chelsea and Liverpool have been mentioned as potential suitors for the striker, who has netted seven goals in 18 Premier League appearances this season.
Despite the speculation, Delap insists he’s not interested in the talk and is concentrating on securing more positive results following Ipswich’s 2-0 victory over Chelsea on Monday night.
‘I don’t really look at things like that. So, yes, I’m just focused on Ipswich,’ Delap told Suffolk News.
‘We are lucky to be playing in the Premier League. I think we’ve got a great opportunity here at Ipswich and we’re just trying to show our ability week in, week out, that’s a big plus for me.’
Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca has made no secret of his admiration for Delap, who he coached as he came through the ranks at Manchester City.
‘Liam is a fantastic player and also for his age. I think we spent one year together and I think he scored 22, 24 goals and he is a very good striker,’ said the Blues boss before the recent meeting with Ipswich.
‘In England, they have many like him and they have many good players, good strikers and he’s working hard off the ball, on the ball he understands the game and can score goals. And also because of his age, I think he can be an important player for England.’
If offers begin to come in for Delap, his former club, Manchester City, could get involved, as there is a buy-back clause in his contract.
Transfer expert Fabrizio Romano mentioned the buy-back clause, although he did not specify its value. He did confirm the presence of a sell-on clause, worth around 20 percent, which could significantly impact Ipswich financially if they sell him to another club.
Ipswich manager Kieran McKenna has been impressed with Delap’s performances this season, praising the forward after his goal in the victory over Chelsea.
‘There were so many outstanding individual performances in there, but Liam was fantastic. There is no doubt about that,’ McKenna said.
‘I’ve been saying it to people around the club that he’s improving and he’s a different beast now to what he was in July.
‘We’re seeing that rate of improvement from a 21-year-old, showing the increased maturity that he is, the desire to improve and that’s a really positive sign at 21.
‘I don’t think he is thinking about that (England call-up) to be honest. Liam is a funny lad. He’s good at staying in the moment.
‘He is enjoying his football, he is enjoying the group of boys he is in the dressing room with. He comes to training and wants to have fun and now he wants to get better as well.’
