Enzo Maresca backed Liam Delap to be “England’s future quantity 9” following his transfer to Chelsea.
The Blues signed Delap from Ipswich City for a reported £30m, with the striker signing a six-year contract at Stamford Bridge.
The Italian supervisor beforehand labored with Delap throughout his time at Manchester Metropolis, teaching the ahead at under-21 stage.
Delap completed the 2024-25 season with 12 Premier League objectives. Solely Marcus Stewart has scored extra for Ipswich throughout a single marketing campaign within the competitors, with 19 in 2000-01.
He averaged a objective each 217.7 minutes within the league and have become the youngest participant to attain in back-to-back house Premier League appearances for Ipswich, and the primary participant to take action general for the membership since Finidi George in March 2002.
Delap’s 12 objectives got here from 9.3 anticipated objectives – an overperformance of two.7. No different Ipswich participant had an xG overperformance larger than 0.9.
Maresca confirmed that Chelsea’s new quantity 9 shouldn’t be exhibiting any nerves and may enhance his recreation on the London membership.
“Liam is aware of fairly nicely how vital is the quantity 9 for this membership… I see him fairly relaxed, straightforward, he’s doing nicely. Since he arrived, he’s working nicely,” mentioned Maresca.
“We all know one another already from years in the past, so I do know what Liam can provide us, he is aware of what we can provide to him to enhance and to develop into a greater participant.
“He was eager to hitch us as a result of he is aware of the best way we play, the season that we had been collectively…he scored 24 objectives.
“I don’t have any doubt that he might be sooner or later England’s quantity 9.”
Getting the touches in. pic.twitter.com/dBgFV12oRG
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) June 16, 2025
Chelsea face Los Angeles FC of their first Membership World Cup match on June 16, however Maresca didn’t verify whether or not Delap would get his first begin forward of Nicolas Jackson.
“I by no means say to a participant you [will] be a primary alternative, the message is at all times the identical: you arrive, you’re employed exhausting, you’re employed greater than the opposite quantity 9 [and you can be],” Maresca added.