Official: Nottingham Forest Sign Delap on Five-Year Deal for Reported Total Fee of £50 Million

On August 27 Beijing time, Premier League club Nottingham Forest officially announced that Chelsea forward Delap has joined the team on a five-year contract and will wear the No. 19 shirt in the new season. According to reports, the total transfer fee for the deal has reached £50 million.

The official announcement from Nottingham Forest is as follows:

Nottingham Forest are delighted to announce that Liam Delap has joined the club and signed a five-year contract.

The forward joins from Chelsea to Trent side, having played at Stamford Bridge last season and making 47 appearances in all competitions. Five of those came in the UEFA Champions League, where Delap scored his first Champions League goal in a 3-0 win over Barcelona.

Delap impressed during his time with Ipswich Town in the 2024/25 season, becoming the Tractor Boys' top scorer. In the Suffolk club's first season back in the top flight after 22 years, he scored 12 goals. He later moved to London.

The forward began his career at Manchester City, joining their academy at the age of 16. At 17, Delap made his senior debut and scored in a League Cup match against Bournemouth. Three days later, in September 2020 against Leicester City, Delap came off the bench to make his Premier League debut.

In the same season, Delap excelled for Manchester City's U21 side, scoring 27 goals in 22 matches.

During his loan spell at Hull City in the 2023/24 season, he enjoyed success and subsequently left Manchester permanently to join newly promoted Ipswich. In the 2024/25 season, he was voted Players' Player of the Season, Young Player of the Season, and Fans' Player of the Season.

The 23-year-old has been a regular for England's youth teams, representing the country from U16 through to U21 level. During this period, Delap won trophies with the national team and was part of the England squad that defeated Israel in the final of the 2022 UEFA European Under-19 Championship in Slovakia.

After joining Nottingham Forest, Delap said: “I really can't wait to get started. This is a great club with a long history. I have spoken with the head coach and I really like his way of coaching. I think he can really help me grow and take the next step. Hopefully I can score goals here.”

“I can't wait to hear the cheers from the City Ground and receive the support from the fans, because I know how loud and important their voices are. As a team, we can build a very strong side. Our main goal is to challenge and become one of the top clubs in the Premier League.”

Football director George Syrianos added: “Liam is a top talent and we have been following him for some time. We are delighted that he has joined us.”

“Although he is young, he has already gained extensive experience at different levels of competition. He arrives here eager to continue developing and contribute to helping the club achieve its goals.”

“He understands the demands of this level and wants to make an immediate impact, so we are all looking forward to seeing him in a Forest shirt.”

Delap will wear the No. 19 shirt during the 2026/27 season. Everyone at Forest welcomes Liam and wishes him every success at the club.