Chelsea has just signed another young striker who is arguably unproven in Premier League football, though that depends on who you ask. Liam Delap joined the Blues recently, arriving to compete with Nicolas Jackson, who many believe could now be on his way out. Both players had very different seasons, though their goalscoring numbers were not far apart.
Delap scored more goals than Jackson, which is significant for two main reasons. The first is that the former Ipswich Town striker played for a team that, well, got relegated. They didn’t create many chances, as you might expect, yet the 22-year-old Englishman still managed to find the net more times than Chelsea’s main striker.
The second reason is perhaps more important. Jackson had 10 more big chances than Delap last season, yet the Englishman still outperformed him in front of goal. This suggests that he may be the better finisher.
That said, this may not be saying much. For relegation-battling Ipswich Town, the former Hull City striker converted 38% of his clear-cut chances, a rather underwhelming ratio in and of itself. However, he did manage to keep exactly 50% of his shots on target, according to Sofascore, which is a solid figure. Jackson, on the other hand, had a 27% conversion rate in the league. He kept 48% of his shots on target, not far off his new teammate's rate.
How likely is Liam Delap to be a success at Chelsea?
This is a case of two strikers who aren’t particularly clinical, but one is clearly worse. The question now is, how many chances will Delap get playing in Chelsea blue? His conversion rate may well decline if he gets more clear-cut chances, as sometimes happens with young forwards in higher-pressure environments.
This is why the Delap signing raises more questions. He doesn’t appear to be a particularly good finisher, and he’s in the same age bracket as Jackson.
The Senegalese international also created and assisted more than Delap, perhaps a byproduct of playing for a better team, but the chance creation numbers do suggest that he might be slightly more well-rounded than his new teammate.
Delap’s success will depend on how much he plays and how well he takes the chances that come his way, assuming, of course, that he gets them. Chelsea created 120 big chances last season, second only to Liverpool, which suggests that he will likely have more opportunities than he did last year.
However, the bigger mystery is where this signing leaves Jackson, especially considering that Enzo Maresca is unlikely to adopt a two-striker system. One cannot overlook the rumours linking Chelsea with another striker either.
So, how likely is Delap to be a success? He certainly has a chance, but it’s important to remember that he hasn’t kicked a ball for the West Londoners yet, and his success will depend on far more than just the statistics discussed here.