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  "path": "/2026/05/07/chelsea-tipped-sell-30m-signing-just-one-season-28278454/",
  "publishedAt": "2026-05-07T22:39:10.000Z",
  "site": "https://metro.co.uk",
  "tags": [
    "Football",
    "Sport",
    "Alan Smith",
    "Chelsea FC",
    "Chelsea transfer news",
    "Liam Delap",
    "Premier League",
    "Transfer News and Rumours",
    "Chelsea",
    "beat a host of rivals",
    "Manchester United",
    "Manchester City",
    "Joao Pedro",
    "Sign up to our daily football newsletter",
    "BestBettingSites",
    "supports HTML5\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tvideo",
    "still has the backing of the Chelsea board",
    "‘up for sale’ ahead of the summer transfer window",
    "BetMGM",
    "losing 3-1 to Nottingham Forest",
    "check our sport page",
    "Facebook",
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    "Add Metro as a Preferred Source on Google\nAdd as preferred source"
  ],
  "textContent": "Chelsea have been tipped to cut their losses (Picture: Getty)\n\nAlan Smith believes Chelsea will cut their losses and sign £30m transfer flop Liam Delap this summer.\n\nChelsea beat a host of rivals, including Manchester United, to sign England U21 star Delap from Ipswich Town last summer.\n\nDelap’s first full season in the Premier League caught the eye of a number of clubs, with the 23-year-old reaching double figures for an Ipswich side who won just four games.\n\nBefore impressing at Ipswich, Delap came through at Manchester City and signing the striker for just £30m was seen as somewhat of a coup for Chelsea.\n\nBut Delap has endured a dismal first season at Stamford Bridge, scoring just two goals in 38 appearances, most of which have come from the bench.\n\nDelap was expected to compete with Joao Pedro for a starting spot but quickly fell behind the Brazilian in the pecking order.\n\nEx-Arsenal striker Smith says Delap ‘doesn’t look like a Chelsea player’ and believes he might be playing for a new club come the start of next season.\n\n##  Get personalised football updates every day\n\nSign up to our daily football newsletter and choose your team to get the latest news, rumours and more about your favourite team.\n\nChelsea signed Liam Delap from Ipswich Town last summer (Picture: Getty)\n\n‘Well, it’s certainly not worked for him at Chelsea,’ Smith told BestBettingSites. ‘It’s not been easy circumstances at all.\n\n‘The club has been in turmoil, really. He doesn’t look like a Chelsea player. He’s got some rough edges there.\n\n‘Whether they could be knocked off, I don’t know. But he suited Ipswich a bit better. I still think he could join a mid to maybe a European challenging team.\n\nEx-Arsenal striker Alan Smith (Picture: Getty)\n\n‘But I think sometimes he gets too involved in the physical side of things, and he’s a little bit mouthy as well. He got booked again the other day for dissent.\n\n‘Maybe that’s a bit of frustration showing, but he would regard it as a failure, I’m sure, to go back to Ipswich. But who knows?\n\n‘I think Chelsea might think they can get him out and get somebody else in.’\n\nTo view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tvideo\n\nUp Next\n\nPrevious Page\n\nNext Page\n\nDelap has been heavily linked with a move away from Stamford Bridge but he still has the backing of the Chelsea board, according to recent reports.\n\nEx-Chelsea defender Glen Johnson believes any player struggling to break into the team will be ‘up for sale’ ahead of the summer transfer window.\n\nAnyone not getting in the team is up for sale,’ Johnson told **Metro** via BetMGM. ‘The team is struggling badly, if you are the person who can’t get in that team, where do you go from there?\n\n‘If they are not good enough to get into a struggling team, then they are not good enough to ever get in the team.\n\n‘You need to rebuild the back-up to push the starting XI and that’s how you improve. If you haven’t got adequate back up, it’s all downhill.’\n\nChelsea’s miserable form continued on Monday as they suffered their sixth successive Premier League defeat, losing 3-1 to Nottingham Forest.\n\nInterim boss Calum McFarlane takes the Blues to Anfield on Saturday to face struggling Premier League champions Liverpool.\n\n**For more stories like this, check our sport page**.\n\n**Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on**Facebook,** Twitter and Instagram**.\n\nComment now Comments \nAdd Metro as a Preferred Source on Google\nAdd as preferred source\n",
  "title": "Chelsea tipped to sell £30m signing after just one season"
}