Chelsea handed golden transfer opportunity as 'major twist' sees rivals pull out of striker chase

Chelsea have received a boost in their apparent pursuit of Ipswich Town striker Liam Delap, with reports suggesting rivals Manchester City have pulled out their interest in re-signing the 21-year-old.

Delap joined Ipswich in the summer for a fee of £20 million from Manchester City, who inserted a £30m buy-back clause in the deal to send him to Portman Road. However, recent reports have suggested that they won’t make a move for him this year.

GiveMeSport claim that City aren’t interested in offering Delap a route back to the Etihad Stadium, amid recent suggestions the Sky Blues could have signed him in January to compete with striker Erling Haaland.

Delap has been in fantastic form at newly-promoted Ipswich, scoring six goals in 12 Premier League games so far this season, which could prove pivotal in helping the club avoid relegation back down to the Championship.

However, the report suggests that City pulling out of a move for Delap will provide a major boost to title rivals Chelsea who are keen on signing the striker, despite Ipswich’s desire to keep him at Portman Road to help them survive relegation.

Chelsea could make a January move for Liam Delap

GiveMeSport suggest that Chelsea could come in with an offer for the 21-year-old in the January transfer window, as they want to add another attacker to their already high-scoring ranks.

Chelsea have been strongly linked to both Napoli striker Victor Osimhen and Newcastle star Alexander Isak. However, now that City seem unlikely to swoop in for Delap, the Blues could sign him as a cheaper, homegrown and younger alternative to Osimhen and Isak - the latter of which would fit the current ownership’s transfer strategy.

Ipswich would likely charge a hefty fee for the 21-year-old, as the report says that they are desperate to keep hold of Delap following on from his impressive start to the Premier League season. However, the lure of a big club like Chelsea could be too much for Delap to turn down.

Delap could replace ‘unhappy’ Chelsea striker

Chelsea already have a top performing striker in the form of Nicolas Jackson who has scored seven goals so far this season, but their other skilled attacker Christopher Nkunku could be on the way out in January as Delap could replace him.

Nkunku is reportedly unhappy with with his game time under Enzo Maresca at Chelsea, as he has just one Premier league start this season despite excellent scoring form in the Europa Conference League and the Carabao Cup.

Reports have suggested that Nkunku is subject to transfer interest from Manchester United and so could leave in January to join Ruben Amorim’s side. The revenue from Nkunku’s sale would be more than enough for the Blues to sign Delap from Ipswich who could be in line to replace Nkunku.