Chelsea's first January transfer for Enzo Maresca is obvious after Ipswich humbling

Chelsea saw their Premier League title hopes severely dented on Monday night as they suffered a shock 2-0 loss at the hands of Ipswich. The Blues were undone by an early penalty from Liam Delap and a strike from Omari Hutchinson in the early stages of the second half, with the defeat coming off the back of a 2-1 reverse at home to Fulham.

Chelsea may turn to the transfer market this month to get their campaign back on track.

And their first signing was staring them in the face at Portman Road, with Delap proving he has what it takes to succeed on the biggest stages.

Chelsea have enjoyed a potent season in front of goal, with only Liverpool and Tottenham finding the back of the net on more occasions in the league.

In August, Enzo Maresca’s men hammered Wolves 6-2, before thumping Brighton 4-2 a month later. A 4-3 victory at Tottenham followed a 5-1 thrashing of Southampton at the start of December as Chelsea appeared to be well and truly in the title race.

But things have turned south over the festive period, with Everton holding the west London giants to a 0-0 draw ahead of their clashes with Fulham and Ipswich.

Chelsea have found the back of the net just once in their last three Premier League matches and are now 10 points adrift of leaders Liverpool after playing one more game than the Merseyside team.

The creativity appears to be lacking in the final third, with Maresca facing a huge challenge to resurrect his team’s title charge.

Nicolas Jackson’s goals have dried up and Christopher Nkunku has only been trusted to start three league matches this term, with Cole Palmer carrying the weight of expectation on his shoulders. So Chelsea should turn to Delap to solve their issues in front of goal.

Delap was given the perfect platform to illustrate his prodigious talents against some of the most talented players in the Premier League on Monday and rose to the challenge as he terrorised the Blues.

The 21-year-old striker won the penalty as he beat away keeper Filip Jorgensen to the ball before getting clipped by the Denmark under-21s star. He dusted himself down to dispatch his spot kick, before teeing up the second goal of the evening.

Delap is big and offers a huge physical presence up front. He has pace and also possesses the composure to make good decisions on the ball. And with seven Premier League goals to his name for a struggling team, he has shown he can be counted on to put the ball in the back of the net.

Liverpool icon Danny Murphy suggested Delap is Harry Kane’s natural successor for England earlier this season. And it is only a matter of time before he moves to a big club in the Premier League.

So Chelsea need to make their move before their rivals to ensure he ends up at Stamford Bridge.