Liam Delap was left with the choice between leaving Ipswich Town for Chelsea or Manchester United in the summer transfer window, with his £ 30 million release clause active
Liam Delap has beaten Manchester United to add to Chelsea this summer, according to reports. Delap is ready to leave the city of Ipswich when the summer transfer window is opened before the business community next month, with a release clause of £ 30 million that becomes active.
The 22-year-old striker scored 12 goals this season in the Premier League for Ipswich and their relegation to the championship opened the door for a move. He has attracted a lot of interest, in which David Moyes admitted last week that Delap “had spoken to three or four clubs”, including Everton.
United had previously had faith to land the England Under-21 International, but it seems that recent events have tipped the balance. Ruben Amorim's side ended a gloomy 15th in the Premier League and will not play any form of European football next season after losing the Europa League final at Tottenham.
Chelsea, on the other hand, ended the season in style, safeguarding a place in the Champions League by finishing in fourth place before he won the Conference League by beating Real Betis in Wednesday's final. They also have personal connections with Delap, thanks to Enzo Maresca and recruitment director Joe Shields.
During his time in the Manchester City Academy, Maresca coached Delap, while Shields played a role in sealing Delap's relocation from Derby to come to City's Academy in 2019. This led to Delap de Blues giving a green light on the deal, according to Talksport.
Delap is supposed to want to pack things before you play for England under the age of 21 at this summer's European championship. The young lions are on their way with a match against the Czech Republic on 12 June and, with Chelsea willing to pay his release clause of £ 30 million, it seems that a deal could be closed quickly.
United is close to announcing a £ 62.5 million deal to sign Matheus Cunha van Wolves, but had hoped to conquer Delap in a double dive. It seems that their last failure of the Europa League and the subsequent embarrassing defeat by Asean All-Stars in Kuala Lumpur is working against them.
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“Liam looks at his options for next year, which I think he has the right to do and we support him with that,” said Ipswich manager Kieran McKenna during a press conference for their last game of the season.
“I think we have given him permission to do that this week. It is a very important decision for his future. Of course there is a lot of interest – and rightly so. I think that some of his week has had some of those conversations.
“It seems more likely than not that he will continue this summer and he is interested in almost every club in the competition, and I don't think there are many clubs in the world that would not want him. (However, nothing is sorted, nothing is done or completed or even whole, very, very close, so that process will take his course.”