Chelsea made just one signing, 19-year-old Mathis Amougou, and allowed a fan favourite in Joao Felix to join AC Milan on loan. It is now being reported that Chelsea will sell Felix in the summer.

However, while fans would not have been too happy about how the club’s January transfer window went, things could be a lot different in the next window.

The Blues already look to be closing in on Ipswich Town’s Liam Delap, who has impressed this season.

Chelsea could sign Liam Delap from Ipswich Town before start of Club World Cup

Chelsea were heavily linked with Delap last month. It was reported on more than one occasion that Chelsea spoke to Ipswich about signing Delap.

In the end, the Blues were unable to get their Premier League rivals to sell to them, but the summer could be another story.

While Chelsea failed to land Delap during the January transfer window, journalist Simon Phillips has claimed on his Substack Si Phillips Talks Chelsea that the club still managed to do a lot of groundwork for a future deal and his signing could be finalised before the Club World Cup begins.

Enzo Maresca‘s men will be competing in the tournament this summer after Chelsea’s Champions League success in 2021.

Despite playing in a significantly weaker team, Delap has managed to match Chelsea’s first-choice striker Nicolas Jackson this season.

Both centre-forwards have scored nine goals each in the Premier League, having played roughly the same number of minutes.

However, when it comes to xG, Jackson has performed worse. The Senegal international should actually have three more goals to his name based on the chances that he has had, while Delap’s tally is where it should be.

What the above suggests is that in a better team, Delap may be able to outscore Jackson. He has too much potential for Chelsea to allow him to join one of their Premier League rivals when they arguably need a new striker themselves.