Enzo Maresca has poured cold water on rumours linking Chelsea with Liam Delap, insisting the club already have ‘the perfect No.9’ at their disposal in Nicolas Jackson.
Widespread reports suggest Chelsea will prioritise strengthening at centre-forward in the summer transfer window, with Jackson’s recent injury shining a spotlight on the Blues’ lack of competition up front.
Christopher Nkunku has fallen some way short of expectations since arriving at Stamford Bridge and it’s been a similar story with Joao Felix, whose struggles have continued on loan at AC Milan since the turn of the year.
With Chelsea determined to close the gap on rivals Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester City, club bosses already begun work to identify possible solutions – and it’s understood Ipswich youngster Delap finds himself at the top of Maresca’s wishlist.
Delap has racked up 12 goals and two assists across an eye-catching first full season in the Premier League – and Chelsea are one of several top clubs keeping close tabs on the England Under-21 international.
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Earlier this week, it emerged that Delap has a £30million release clause in his contract at Portman Road which comes into effect if Ipswich are relegated into the Championship.
‘He’s already very good,’ Maresca said of Delap ahead of Chelsea’s Premier League clash with Ipswich on Sunday.
‘I know Liam from five, six years ago. I had him for one season with Manchester City’s Under-23s so I know him quite well.
‘He’s already a good player, he’s already a very good player and he can be a top player.
‘It depends on him but he is doing well at Ipswich and all the best to him.’
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Delap opened the scoring in Ipswich’s 2-0 victory over Chelsea in December and Maresca knows his defence must be wary of the young striker.
‘It’s something we need to pay attention to, for sure,’ the Chelsea head coach added.
‘If you watch Ipswich, he is doing that against any team, not just against us. But in the first game, he was quite good for them.
‘We need to deal with that, and we need to do much, much better compared to the first game [the loss at Ipswich].’
Maresca continued: ‘In terms of numbers, he’s doing fantastic. I think he’s scored 12 [Premier League] goals already.
‘It’s not just in terms of his numbers. The way he plays and fights and is always there.
‘But he’s an Ipswich player. He’s an enemy on Sunday because we need to beat them, and then after the game I wish him all the best for the future.’
According to Maresca, Delap has proven himself to be a top talent, but has some way to go before he can be likened to the very best strikers in world football.
The Italian was also keen to stress that Chelsea had a dangerous centre-forward of their own in Jackson.
‘To compare Liam with Harry Kane and Erling Haaland, I think it’s a bit early,’ Maresca went on.
‘But for sure, in terms of style he’s that kind of player. They are all real nines. They are nines inside the box.
‘But we also have a good nine [in Nico Jackson]. He’s doing well since we started. Unfortunately, we’ve missed him, and sometimes you need to miss players to realise how important they are for you.
‘With Nico, we are a completely different team compared to when he was injured. We are happy with Nico as our striker.’
Asked to explain the kind of No.9 he ideally wants at Chelsea, Maresca replied: ‘My perfect No.9 is exactly Nico Jackson. We already have a No.9. It’s not summer now.’
With seven games remaining of the top-flight season remaining, Maresca was in no mood to discuss Chelsea’s transfer business.
If we can have a copy of Nico, it’s OK. I have said many times, and you can see as well, with Nico we are a better team. Nico is the one we need,’ he said.
‘Last season, he scored goals without penalties. This season he scored goals until he was injured. Now, hopefully he can score more goals without penalties.
‘We are happy with Nico. And about next season, it’s not the moment [to talk about transfers].’
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