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From the right, Cole Palmer cut inside. And he saw Liam Delap sprinting into the wide open space. A pass was immediately played. Then, for all to see, Delap delivered a precise cross for captain Enzo Fernandez to run in and finish from close range, sealing a 2-0 win for Chelsea in their opening FIFA Club World Cup match against Los Angeles.
This is exactly what the West Londoners envisioned when they spent £30m to sign Delap from Ipswich Town. Palmer and Nicolas Jackson have formed a strong partnership, combining for goals in seven games last season. But Palmer and Delap also have an uncanny understanding.
In 2019, when they were both playing for Man City U18s, Delap assisted Palmer’s brace in a 3-0 win over Everton U18s. As Man City B coach, Enzo Maresca knows them better than anyone. Under him, Delap scored 27 goals and Palmer 28. With them in the team, it was a very strong team. The two played together 33 times for Man City youth teams and England U21s. They won 28 of those.
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Liam Delap celebrates with Palmer and Enzo Fernandes. |
Back in the match against Los Angeles, in the 69th minute, Palmer had the ball in midfield and Delap immediately knew what to do. He occupied the space between the opposing full-back and centre-back, sprinting to receive a through-ball from his friend who was nine months his senior. With strength and technique, he beat his marker and from the wide area, passed back for Enzo Fernandes to finish.
Although he failed to score on his debut, the Delap effect was positive. In addition to his partnership with Palmer, in the 26 minutes he was on the pitch, he provided glimpses of a powerful No. 9 who exploits the space in behind the opposition defence to create chances for himself and his teammates.
Jackson started at Mercedes-Benz on Tuesday morning and also provided an assist, a brilliant through ball for Pedro Neto to open the scoring. However, the Senegalese striker also missed a good chance to score, as he has so many times before.
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Jackson was unhappy to be sent off, making way for Delap. |
In the 2024/25 Premier League alone, Jackson missed 19 good chances, the most for Chelsea and the fourth most in the league. According to another statistic, Jackson's actual goals (10) were 2.3 goals less than his expected goals (xG). As for Delap, he only missed 10 such chances, while scoring 12 goals, 2.7 more than expected.
Additionally, with 68 shots, Delap's conversion rate was 17.7%. This figure is again better than Jackson, who only converted 13.2% of his 76 shots into goals.
It would be no surprise if Delap became Maresca's preferred centre-forward. A few months ago, the Italian coach said "it would be too early to compare Liam to Harry Kane and Erling Haaland, but based on his style, he is similar to the other two, both are real No. 9s and penalty area killers".
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Delap shows the ability to quickly integrate into a new environment. |
Jackson must have felt the threat from Delap. He was not happy to be substituted, and also appeared cold when he met Delap on the pitch. The 22-year-old English striker was different.
"I'm really happy and excited for my first game with Chelsea. There's always competition at this club and you thrive on that competition," Delap said after the match.
For Chelsea, they have only benefited from the battle for starting places between Jackson and Delap. They have achieved stability after years of turmoil and now it is time to take another step forward, back to the top.
Source: https://tienphong.vn/liam-delap-va-phat-sung-lenh-mo-man-cuoc-chien-moi-o-chelsea-post1751999.tpo
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