Ipswich Town have shown flashes of quality here and there this season in the Premier League, but that unfortunately hasn’t stopped the losses piling up next to their name.
For all the memorable victories against Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur, there have also been bleak defeats served up, with the Tractor Boys last tasting the unfamiliar sensation of a win way back at the start of April.
Therefore, relegation straight back down to the Championship hasn’t come as a great shock to Kieran McKenna’s men as they begin to now prepare for life without Liam Delap when readjusting to the second tier.
The latest on Delap’s future at Ipswich
A lot of Ipswich’s brighter moments this season have come courtesy of the ex-Manchester City striker.
The Tractor Boys riskily went ahead with the signature of Delap last summer for £20m, which looked to be a steep amount at the time, considering he had never really gone on to make a name for himself in the senior fold at the Etihad.
But, the now potent Premier League proven attacker could move on for nearly double that amount – as his release clause stands at £30m if Ipswich were to be relegated – which would still be a bargain pick-up arguably when you take into account he has bagged a promising 12 league strikes in a relegation-doomed side.
Chelsea, Newcastle United, and Manchester United are all reportedly keen on landing the much-talked-about 22-year-old, with the Guardian even recently reporting that a £150k-per-week move has been thrust Delap’s way from Ruben Amorim’s men.
To add insult to injury, this isn’t the only demoralising sale Ipswich might well have to sign off on soon, with one of Delap’s teammates proving he’s ready to cut it in the Premier League long-term away from Portman Road.
Another important Ipswich star could leave
McKenna is a popular figure in and around the Tractor Boys, so he will be hopeful that he can keep his core group around for the tough challenge of immediately returning to the top-flight.
But, Leif Davis could soon join Delap out the exit door at the freshly relegated side, with a new report from TWTD suggesting Nuno Espirito Santo’s Nottingham Forest are keeping tabs on the expansive full-back ahead of the chaotic summer transfer window.
Whilst Davis hasn’t quite been at his consistent rampaging best in the big time for Ipswich, with only three assists mustered up from 31 league outings, this would be a huge hole to fill down the left flank if he were to go, considering his expertise when dropping down to the Championship.
Along the way to Ipswich clinching automatic promotion at the close of the dramatic 2023/24 campaign, the ex-Leeds United man would pick up an astounding 21 assists, with a high 2.9 key passes also averaged per league contest.
To lose this from the Tractor Boys’ attacking game back in the EFL would be disastrous, therefore, with the “sensational” full-back – as he’s been lauded in the past by football journalist Stuart Watson – arguably a harder star to replace than the prolific Delap, just for how effective he’s been at the level previously.
After all, Ipswich managed just fine without the clinical number 19 when Davis and Co. last soared into the Premier League, with Conor Chaplin, Nathan Broadhead, and many others chipping in with the strikes instead.
It will be intriguing to see if the Northern Irishman does end up relocating to the City Ground or any other pastures, therefore, with the loss of Davis, on top of Delap moving on, severely depleting Ipswich ahead of playing in the unforgiving Championship again.
