Chelsea are closing in on a move for Ipswich Town striker Liam Delap, after activating the £30 million release clause in his contract following the Tractor Boys’ relegation from the Premier League.
Chelsea have beaten off plenty of competition for Delap from both the Premier League and abroad. As reported by football.london, he has chosen Chelsea due to the style of play, the quality already in the squad and a belief that the club can compete for top honours.
The move will also see him reunited with a coach he know well in Enzo Maresca. The now Chelsea boss worked with both Delap and Cole Palmer during the trio’s time with the Manchester City development squad.
Maresca has regularly been full of praise for his former striker, including throughout the season just gone. Speaking back in October 2020, the Italian spoke about the then ongoing development of both Delap and Palmer as they made their way through the City youth team.
“It’s a good thing for them (Delap and Palmer) to see their mates in the first team,” he told the official Man City website . “It is extra motivation for everyone else when your mates join the first team – you realise that maybe one day it will be your moment and your day, so you need to be ready.
“But, first of all, the most important thing for all the lads is to work every day in the right way and to understand that to have the chance to be with the first team they need to be very professional and to be very intensive in training.”
The now Chelsesa boss also outlined a dream he had for the future, which has come true for both Delap and Palmer. “For me, I’m very happy to work every day with them and I will be very happy in the future if I see I can be important for them in terms of helping them to improve,” he added.
Maresca will now have the chance to works with both together again, with the hope that he can continue to play a big part in improving them further. If he does, that’s only good news for Chelsea.
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