Chelsea set to sign Liam Delap after triggering £30m clause | OneFootball

Chelsea are on the verge of completing the signing of Liam Delap, with the club set to activate his £30 million release clause.

According to journalist Fabrizio Romano, he will sign a contract within the next 24 hours as Ipswich Town have now authorised medical tests.

The 22-year-old accepted the long-term project. Delap will add depth and more youth to Chelsea’s squad.

Champions League football and manager Enzo Maresca played key roles in convincing the England Under-21 international to join Chelsea.

His former club, Manchester City, will not activate their buy-back clause.

However, they will benefit from a 30 percent share of the fee due to a sell-on clause agreed in his move to Ipswich last summer.

Manchester United, Newcastle, Everton, Nottingham Forest, AC Milan and Juventus were keen, but they will now miss out on the England youth international.

Delap spent the previous two seasons on loan in the Championship with Stoke City, Preston North End and Hull City, scoring 12 goals in 70 appearances.

Ipswich have shown interest in Chelsea striker Marc Guiu. The 19-year-old Spaniard could be included in a potential loan deal, although no agreement has been reached.

It remains unclear whether the Chelsea move for Delap will stop them from signing another striker. The Blues are still being linked with Hugo Ekitike and Viktor Gyokeres.

They are also trying to sign Strasbourg striker Emanuel Emegha. This could spell doom for Chelsea star Nicolas Jackson, who has endured an underwhelming season.

Jackson scored in the Europa Conference League final against Real Betis but also missed a chance that he should have buried. His profligacy could result in him leaving Stamford Bridge this summer.