Chelsea and Newcastle are providing fierce competition for Manchester United in the race to sign Liam Delap, who will hold discussions with all of his suitors before deciding who to join when he leaves Ipswich this summer.
Delap, whose release clause drops to £30m after Ipswich’s relegation from the Premier League, has already spoken to executives at United to gain a sense of what a move to Old Trafford would entail. A contract worth £150,000 a week has been put forward. Talks with several other clubs are anticipated and it is understood that Chelsea and Newcastle have been wooing the 22-year-old behind closed doors.
Newcastle are looking to add more depth to a small squad and are understood to have made it clear that they feel that Delap can play in tandem with their star forward, Alexander Isak. Eddie Howe will also need a quality alternative to Isak – who is reportedly set to undergo groin surgery at the end of the season – if Newcastle seal qualification for the Champions League this weekend.
Delap has enjoyed a breakout campaign since leaving Manchester City last summer, scoring 12 goals in 39 appearances, and represents an affordable option for any club looking to sign a striker this summer. There is no chance of him staying at Ipswich, who had looked into renegotiating the terms of his departure at one stage but are now resigned to him leaving. A deal within weeks would allow all sides clarity well before pre-season. At least one interested club have seen their hopes of signing Delap dashed after being made aware that he wants to play at the highest possible level.
Chelsea have a policy of signing young players and like the England Under-21 international. They have alternatives and it has been suggested they will prioritise a move for the RB Leipzig forward Benjamin Sesko if they qualify for the Champions League.
Sesko has interest from elsewhere, including Arsenal, but has been tracked by Chelsea for three years. The 21-year-old Slovenia international has scored 26 goals for club and country this season.
Delap is well known to United’s technical director, Jason Wilcox, from their time at City. United are also pushing to seal the signing of the Wolves forward Matheus Cunha and have considered Eintracht Frankfurt’s Hugo Ekitike, Napoli’s Victor Osimhen and Sporting’s Viktor Gyökeres.
