Ipswich Town can replace one goal-machine with another this summer ahead of the 2025/26 Championship campaign.
After suffering relegation from the Premier League, Ipswich Town are preparing for life back in the Championship.
Head coach Kieran McKenna was linked with the Brentford job, but with Keith Andrews poised to replace Thomas Frank, fears of the Tractor Boys leaving have quietened.
One prominent figure in recent Ipswich history has moved on, however, after Ipswich pulled off a masterstroke in the £30m sale of star forward Liam Delap to top flight Chelsea.
With Ipswich now in desperate need to replace the goalscoring void left by departed Delap, there is one League One superstar that the Tractor Boys should be targeting in the summer transfer window.
Wycombe Wanderers FC v Stevenage FC - Sky Bet League One
Photo by Catherine Ivill – AMA/Getty Images
Ipswich Town should sign Richard Kone as Liam Delap replacement
The 2024/25 season ended in tears for Wycombe Wanderers after defeat in the third tier play-off final against Charlton Athletic, and the transfer vultures are circling over Adams Park as a result.
Striker Richard Kone was the spearhead of Wycombe’s promotion charge, thanks to his 18-goal campaign, which saw Kone named League One Player of the Year for his exploits.
As a result of his stunning form, as many as 10 clubs were tracking Kone this season, and that transfer interest has intensified into the summer window.
EFL Analysis revealed this week that Wycombe are plotting a record-breaking offer, which would make the 21-year-old the highest earner in the club’s history, in their attempt to retain Kone beyond this summer.
Our Chief Football Correspondent, Graeme Bailey, has confirmed that Southampton and Ipswich have “watched him closely” over the last six months ahead of their Championship return, and that Birmingham and Middlesbrough have also “done work” on Kone.
On Sky Sports, EFL pundit Jobi McAnuff described Kone as “fantastic” earlier this season after Luton Town made a £6m play to sign Kone in January, and with the Hatters now relegated, it’s expected that a Championship side will be his next destination.
The Ivorian forward has a similar physical profile to Delap, and has vastly outscored the Englishman so far in their respective times in the EFL.
With Kone entering the final 12 months of his current Wycombe contract, Ipswich must strike a deal now for the prolific forward, who could propel them to promotion next term.
Liam Delap during Ipswich Town FC v Chelsea FC - Premier League
Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images
Richard Kone’s career statistics compared to Liam Delap
Kone’s rise to prominence has been remarkable, after playing in the ninth tier of English football at Athletic Newham, to becoming League One’s Player of the Season with Wycombe in such a short space of time.
For Manchester City academy product Delap, it was always expected that his trajectory would take him to the top flight, despite lacklustre loan stints at Stoke and Preston North End before he found goals consistently on loan at Hull and since his permanent move to Ipswich.
Statistic Richard Kone’s record at Wycombe Wanderers Liam Delap’s combined senior record
Games played 73 117
Goals 25 25
Assists 9 5
Richard Kone’s Wycombe record compared to Liam Delap’s combined record at senior level, data as per Transfermarkt
Whichever Championship outfit secures Kone’s signature this summer, they will have acquired one of the best centre-forward prospects in English football given his proven goalscoring prowess and lofty potential to develop further.
McKenna was instrumental in the development of Delap, who enjoyed his most productive campaign in front of goal under his tutelage at Ipswich, which saw Chelsea shell out £30m for his striking services.
As such, Kone could comfortably be the heir to Delap’s Tractor Boys throne, if Ipswich can fend off the vast Championship interest in the starlet and sign him this summer.