Tottenham Hotspur look set to suffer their first major transfer blow of the summer, with Liam Delap, who is rumoured to be one of their top targets, now edging closer to a switch to a London rival.
Following Ipswich’s relegation, Delap is available for just £30m due to a clause in his contract, and it has been an open secret for a long time that the youngster will depart the Portman Road Stadium.
Several outlets have claimed over the past few months that Spurs are confident of beating the likes of Man United and Chelsea to Delap.
However, it emerged on talkSPORT a couple of weeks ago that Chelsea had overtaken Tottenham in the race for the Ipswich star, and the Blues now appear ready to drive home their advantage.
Fabrizio Romano provides the latest on Liam Delap
Fabrizio Romano has now confirmed that the West London club are in the driving seat to land the Ipswich man this summer.
The journalist took to social media to reveal that the 22-year-old has made it clear that his preference is to move to Stamford Bridge over his other suitors.
He adds that Delap has held positive talks with Chelsea, who are now expected to follow the formal steps to finalise a £30m deal, which is well underway. There is no mention of Tottenham Hotspur.
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Is this a major blow for Tottenham?
Many Spurs fans will be disappointed if the Lilywhites allow Delap to complete a switch to Chelsea.
However, it is not clear at the moment if a new striker is near the top of Tottenham’s priorities for the summer transfer window.