Nottingham Forest has finalized a record-breaking deal worth around £50 million to sign Chelsea striker Liam Delap. The 23-year-old is set to undergo a medical and sign a long-term contract at the City Ground in the coming days.

A record transfer for Forest

The move represents the club’s biggest investment in its history. Delap arrives a year after joining Chelsea from Ipswich Town for £30 million, with Manchester United and Everton also interested. However, the London club decided to sell him this summer after a season in which he scored just one Premier League goal, hampered by shoulder and hamstring injuries. Forest has already bolstered its squad with the signing of defender Ousmane Diomande from Sporting for £34 million, as well as free transfers of Austrian midfielder Xaver Schlager and goalkeeper Steve Benda. The club has also sold English midfielder Elliot Anderson to Manchester City for a record £116 million and striker Taiwo Awoniyi to Coventry City for £9 million.

Heightened attacking competition

Delap’s arrival should provide competition for strikers Chris Wood and Igor Jesus, who failed to find the net in Forest’s opening Premier League defeat, 1-0 to Leeds at home. Chelsea has also strengthened its attack this summer with the arrivals of Emmanuel Emegha from Strasbourg and Danny Welbeck from Brighton. Delap was developed at Derby County before joining Manchester City in 2019. After winning the FA Youth Cup with City’s youth team in the 2019-20 season, he scored 24 goals in 20 Premier League 2 appearances in 2020-21, helping secure the title. He made his first-team debut in September 2020, scoring in a 2-1 League Cup win over Bournemouth, before playing his first Premier League match three days later in a 5-2 defeat to Leicester. Injuries, however, limited his first-team opportunities, and between 2022 and 2024, he was loaned to Championship sides Stoke, Preston North End, and Hull City. Last summer, City sold him to Ipswich for £20 million, where he scored 12 goals in 37 Premier League games for the promoted side.

Mixed performances

With 13 goals in 67 Premier League appearances, Delap has yet to fulfill his potential. His move to Forest represents a fresh opportunity to revive his career at a club in need of results following a difficult start to the season. The club is now banking on his experience to energize an underperforming attack. To stay updated on Nottingham Forest, you can listen to dedicated podcasts on BBC Sounds. For more on the ongoing negotiations surrounding Liam Delap, check out our article Forest in talks to sign Liam Delap. Also, find details on Ousmane Diomande’s arrival with Forest officially announce Diomande’s arrival for £34m.