Outside of Chelsea, not too many people are familiar with the club’s co-director of recruitment and talent Joe Shields.
However, those who do follow Chelsea quickly found themselves showing their appreciation for the work that he has done at Cobham since arriving from Southampton.
Joe Shields has been credited for the signing of Cole Palmer after working with the attacking midfielder at Manchester City.
He is also thought to have had a role in the arrivals of Romeo Lavia and Jadon Sancho, who are formerly of City as well. It now looks like the Chelsea director could push his club to sign another former City player.
Joe Shields a big fan of Liam Delap
Delap played for City before they sold the striker to Ipswich Town for £20m in the summer. There, the 21-year-old has made a real impression.
In his first 11 Premier League appearances this season, Delap has scored six goals. That is one fewer than what Chelsea’s first-choice No.9 Nicolas Jackson has managed.
According to journalist Simon Phillips, Shields is now pushing the Blues to sign the England U21 international.
Discussing Chelsea’s interest in Delap on Si Phillips Talks Chelsea, Phillips said: “Sources have said that Joe Shields is pushing the interest and is a big fan of the player. As reported last week, his underlying data and numbers are incredible, and that is what Chelsea’s analysts and recruiters are looking at and are impressed by right now.”
Phillips has also claimed that Chelsea have been scouting Delap regularly during the current campaign.
Who has Liam Delap scored against this season?
As already mentioned, Delap had netted six times in 11 Premier League games before today. It is a return that Delap can be very happy with.
He is still just 21 years of age, while Ipswich are a newly-promoted side fighting for survival. The centre-forward has scored against some strong opposition, too.
For example, Delap scored against Tottenham Hotspur just before the international break and also grabbed a brace versus Aston Villa in September.
| Liam Delap’s opponents so far this season | Goals scored |
| Liverpool | 0 |
| Manchester City | 0 |
| Fulham | 1 |
| Brighton & Hove Albion | 0 |
| Southampton | 0 |
| Aston Villa | 2 |
| West Ham United | 1 |
| Everton | 0 |
| Brentford | 1 |
| Leicester City | 0 |
| Tottenham Hotspur | 1 |
All in all, Delap could be a very good alternative to Jackson for Chelsea. And still just 21, he has time to grow into an even better centre-forward.
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