‘Absolutely nailed on’ – Liam Delap sent clear Everton transfer message as one move ruled out

Everton were keen on signing Liam Delap last summer before he joined Chelsea from Ipswich Town

Everton have been backed to make a fresh transfer raid for Liam Delap this summer after missing out to Chelsea last year. David Moyes was keen on signing Delap last summer, as the forward had a £30million release clause in his Ipswich Town contract following the club’s Premier League relegation.

While Everton held talks with Delap, he opted to join Chelsea, rejecting the chance to also join Manchester United in the process. But his move to Stamford Bridge has not worked out as planned, and he has scored just twice in 38 appearances in all competitions.

And former Everton star Pat Nevin believes Everton would be the ideal club for Delap to get his career back on track.

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“I don’t see him going back to Ipswich,” he told Grosvenor Casinos. “Everton would be the obvious place. Absolutely nailed on.

“I’m not saying it’s a done deal, but I think Everton want him and I think it would be brilliant for everyone. And it’s a safer bet for him.

“Delap is nailed on for Everton. There’s technical reasons why. When people talk about the number of goals scored, it’s actually not exactly about that for Everton.

“You need a certain type of player to hold up the ball, to run the channels, to stretch the game so that three quality players behind you – and they have got brilliant players behind them – get a chance to shine.

“Delap would be perfect. I don’t know if they’ll get him, but Chelsea’s not the right place for him.”

And speaking via BetVictor earlier this month, Andy Townsend urged: “With Thierno Barry and Beto at Everton, there’s an opportunity for somebody if you want to go in there and grab a shirt.

“Those boys are no doubt giving it their very best, but you’d like to think that there’s an opportunity there for somebody if they can convince David Moyes that they can go in there and do it.

“With Liam, he’s a big, bustling, hard-running, aggressive centre forward. It’s difficult for a centre-forward to be overly aggressive nowadays because you just can’t get away with that.

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“But I do think that there’s another dimension to his game that he’s got to find. The problem is you go to a club like Chelsea and you’re not playing a lot of football if you’re not playing in the team.

“There isn’t reserve football or anything like that. You don’t get the minutes that perhaps you used to get in generations gone by to keep yourself ticking over.

“I’m sure he’s very frustrated, but he’s got to get razor-sharp this summer and at the start of next season. He’s got to look like he wants to really get in there and make the difference.”