Chelsea confirm £30m signing of Liam Delap from Ipswich Town

Chelsea Football Club have announced the signature of England forward Liam Delap from Ipswich Town for £30m.

The London club were determined to bring in a new striker this summer and have moved swiftly to secure one of their top targets. Delap, who has signed a six-year deal, chose to join Chelsea after receiving pitches from Everton, Newcastle, Nottingham Forest and Manchester United.

Delap scored 12 goals for Ipswich last season and was available at an affordable price following their relegation from the Premier League. Chelsea met the release clause in his contract last week.

The forward, who joined Ipswich from Manchester City last summer, has been asked to miss the Under-21 European Championship in order to represent his new team at the Club World Cup.

“I understand the stature of this club and can see the trajectory it is on with these players and the head coach,” Delap told Chelsea’s website. “It’s going to be an incredible place for me to develop, and I hope to achieve amazing things here and help the club win more trophies.”

Delap added: “I wanted to come here to win trophies. When I spoke to the club, everyone wanted to get back to the very top, and they have the quality and the players to do that. The hunger and desire to keep adding trophies, to take the club back to where it belongs, that is the main objective.”

Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca had made it clear that he wanted to add more firepower to his frontline. Nicolas Jackson has been relied upon to lead their attack but beyond him there isn’t the quality and the manager doesn’t seem to trust the likes of Christopher Nkunku.

All eyes will be on Delap when he makes his debut for the London club during the FIFA Club World Cup tournament in the United States.