Kieran McKenna will be relieved that his Ipswich Town side is not now in the Premier League’s bottom three, after a dramatic 4-1 victory against West Ham United last time out.
Fortunately, at the present, there are three worse teams than the Tractor Boys, with Wolverhampton Wanderers at the bottom of the table, having shipped a dismal 21 goals, and Southampton and Crystal Palace in the other two bottom slots.
McKenna will be well aware that if his team is not careful, they will quickly find themselves in those murky waters, but he will be grateful to have Liam Delap at his disposal to try to keep them out of those undesirable situations.
Delap’s electric start at Ipswich
Delap did come into the building in Suffolk with a reputation as a clinical finisher, having scored 35 goals in 36 appearances for his old club Manchester City at U21 level.
However, reproducing similar feats away from the comforts of youth pitches in the men’s game is a very other ballgame, but the 21-year-old has managed to smoothly slot in at Portman Road as an exciting goal machine thus far.
He has four goals in seven games so far, with his efforts critical to Ipswich gaining some points in their new brutal league.
Ipswich are still winless, but without Delap, they would be battling far more, with losses aplenty instead of hard-fought draws.
Liam Delap's second strike against Aston Villa is your September Goal of the Month. ⚽️🏆 pic.twitter.com/9kiGdm9sAn
— IPSWICH TOWN (@IpswichTown) October 5, 2024
His magnificent brace at Aston Villa last month, for example, helped McKenna’s side to a reasonable 2-2 draw against Unai Emery’s side, who went on to face Bayern Munich in the Champions League a few days later.
Pep Guardiola described Delap as a “incredible” talent while he was still at Manchester City, and Ipswich appear to have struck gold with him, as he is proving himself to be a top star, more than deserving the £20 million price tag above his head.
Of course, the Tractor Boys’ position near the bottom of the top-flight league suggests that a team further up the division may take an interest in the electrifying 21-year-old shortly, as Ipswich prepare to turn down some notable suitors in January.
Delap’s value in 2024
According to current sources, Delap is being pursued by a number of Premier League clubs, including Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea, with a proposal of roughly £34 million potentially enough to persuade the Tractor Boys to split ways.
That would make the 6’1″ attacker the Suffolk club’s record departure, which would be fantastic business given he has only been on the books of the newly promoted team since the summer.
However, Delap joining Spurs or Enzo Maresca’s side would seriously undermine McKenna’s charges’ short-term ambitions, especially if they are serious about remaining in the promised land of the Premier League beyond this season.
Without the former Manchester City wonderkid’s league goals, Ipswich would only have two, with Delap sticking around for the entire season being more vital than them winning the rumoured £34 million.
Ipswich may want to cash in later, especially if they are relegated to the Championship, but keeping a firm grasp on the star striker will be a top priority this transfer window.
