Newcastle interested in Liam Delap as Chelsea eye £40m deal - Report

Newcastle United are going to be in the market for more firepower this summer following a tough season for their £124 million strike force.

Both Yoane Wissa and Nick Woltemade have struggled for goals this season after their big-money moves to Tyneside in the summer.

Nick Woltemade started well following his £69 million arrival from Stuttgart, but his form faded, and his confidence went with it. Meanwhile, Yoane Wissa suffered a bad injury just days after signing for Newcastle, and he's not really hit the right levels of fitness since.

It hasn't helped that Newcastle's fixture schedule has been so packed that there's been no time for proper training sessions, which means neither Woltemade nor Wissa has really trained properly with the team.

We expect that a full pre-season with the club will fix a lot of issues for both strikers, but still, Newcastle will look to add another striker option in the summer.

Eddie Howe retains interest in Liam Delap

It seems that Newcastle United remain keen on Liam Delap, who hasn't got going at Chelsea since the Blues beat Newcastle to his signing last year.

The former Ipswich striker has just one goal for Chelsea this season and has found it hard to nail down a place in the starting lineup.

TalkSPORT report that Chelsea would be open to offers on Delap, who is valued at around £40 million, and it's believed Newcastle have shown renewed interest in the 23-year-old.

This was something Craig Hope hinted at in a piece for The Mail earlier this month, noting that Newcastle were eager to land the striker prior to his move to Stamford Bridge last summer.

Eddie Howe's striker rehabilitation centre

Despite being another striker without goals this season, we can see the sense in looking at Delap. He looks more like a striker who fits Eddie Howe's style, and we were quite keen to see him at Newcastle last year before Chelsea scooped him up.

Repairing his confidence could be the big issue, but that seems to be what's going to take up Howe's summer anyway. HE's going to have to set up some kind of group therapy for failing strikers, so he might as well add another seat.

Delap was excellent for Ipswich in the Premier League last season, and being able to stand out in a team fighting relegation is always a feat. He's still only 23, too, so he should be able to write this season off as a blip and get his career back on track.

It could be seen as a risk if Newcastle were to pursue this option, but it could be one worth taking.