Liam Delap has completed a £30 million move to Chelsea from Ipswich Town, becoming the latest striker to inherit the club’s infamous No 9 shirt.
The 22-year-old signed a six-year contract on Wednesday after passing a medical, and will link up with Enzo Maresca’s squad immediately ahead of their Club World Cup campaign.
Delap is Chelsea’s second signing of the summer, following teenage midfielder Dario Essugo.
The England youth international arrives after a standout season at Ipswich, where he netted 12 league goals.
His move to west London signals Chelsea’s renewed faith in young talent under Maresca.
However, Delap takes on a shirt number steeped in misfortune at Stamford Bridge.
The No 9 jersey has become something of a poisoned chalice, with a long list of strikers including Romelu Lukaku, Alvaro Morata, Gonzalo Higuain, Fernando Torres and Radamel Falcao all struggling under its weight.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was the most recent player to wear the number, before leaving the club quietly in 2023.
Once worn with pride by the prolific Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, the No 9 shirt has since haunted many of its wearers.
Lukaku’s £98 million return ended in disarray after loans and a forced training exile, while Morata, Torres, and others failed to meet expectations.
Delap could make his debut on June 16 when Chelsea face Mexico’s Club Leon in their opening match of the Club World Cup. He will be hoping to flip the script on one of English football’s most infamous shirt curses.Delap could make his debut on June 16 when Chelsea face Mexico’s Club Leon in their opening match of the Club World Cup. He will be hoping to flip the script on one of English football’s most infamous shirt curses.
