“Can Liam play for the biggest clubs in the country, the biggest clubs in the world? He certainly can. I fully believe that.” The words of McKenna when Delap began to be linked with a raft of top-flight teams towards the end of the 2024-25 campaign.

The son of former Derby County defender Rory ultimately opted for Stamford Bridge.

The decision to join a congested Chelsea squad as a still-raw talent was met with some scepticism but the attraction of reuniting with then-Blues head coach Enzo Maresca may have been a decisive factor.

Maresca was Manchester City‘s under-21 boss when Delap enjoyed great success with the club’s academy, scoring 24 goals in 20 matches in 2020-21 as City won the Premier League 2 title.

His move to Chelsea, however, has been a disaster. It began with Delap’s decision to rule himself out of last summer’s Under-21 European Championship – a tournament that England would go on to win – to make himself available for Chelsea‘s Club World Cup campaign.

The former Stoke, Preston and Hull striker then scored just three goals in 47 appearances overall, a loss of form which resulted in Chelsea giving Delap’s number nine shirt to Joao Pedro before his departure was sanctioned this summer.

Delap’s struggles at Chelsea have been underpinned by three managerial changes and hamstring and shoulder injuries, but also difficulties adjusting to a different gameplan.

Whereas Ipswich used Delap’s speed effectively by counter-attacking into space behind high defensive lines, Chelsea focused more on building possession.

Spain forward Esther Gonzalez has attracted backlash after signing for Saudi Women’s Premier League side Al Qadsiah.

The 33-year-old agreed a mutual contract termination with National Women’s Soccer League champions Gotham FC in July to temporarily step away from the sport to “attend to personal matters in Spain”, according to the club’s statement.

Gonzalez, whose contract was due to expire in 2027, said on Instagram the decision was “due to strictly personal reasons”, adding New York-based Gotham will “always hold a special place in my heart”.

However, on Sunday, Al Qadsiah announced the signing of the 2023 World Cup winner, sparking criticism from both Gotham fans over the nature of her departure, and from within the LGBTQ+ community.

Same-sex relationships and sexual activity are illegal in Saudi Arabia.

Fans on social media questioned her motivations and expressed concerns for her safety while Gotham supporters voiced their disappointment over the messaging around her exit and the club missing out on a transfer fee.

According to Spanish outlet El Mundo,, external Gonzalez has deleted all photos of herself with her wife and their first child, born in January, from her social media accounts since signing for Al Qadsiah.

Gonzalez is not the first footballer to encounter negative reactions for moving to Saudi Arabia, with England midfielder Jordan Henderson attracting criticism following his transfer to Saudi Pro League side Al-Ettifaq in 2023.

The move was described as a “slap in the face” by openly gay footballer Jake Daniels, who had received a message of support from Henderson when he came out.

The former Liverpool captain, who had previously shown his support for the LGBTQ+ community by wearing rainbow laces, a One Love armband, and writing messages of solidarity in a matchday programme, left Al-Ettifaq after six months.

Gonzalez won two NWSL titles, an NWSL Challenge Cup, and the Concacaf W Champions Cup in three seasons after moving to the United States from Real Madrid.

Al Qadsiah finished fourth in the Saudi Women’s Premier League in 2025-26.

BBC Sport has contacted Gotham FC for comment.

Thierno Barry scored three goals and set up the other as Everton sauntered into the third round of the Carabao Cup by way of a 4-0 win over Preston at Deepdale.

The French striker scored eight goals in 41 games in 2025/26 and, after his first of the season in Saturday’s Premier League win over Crystal Palace, is now already halfway to matching that total despite having played 38 games fewer.

The Toffees – who have not progressed past the third round since 2023/24 – have been drawn to face Wolves in the next round.

A strong Everton team were in control from the off. They dominated the ball and chances came thick and fast against a Preston side who’ve lost two from two in the Sky Bet Championship but, for the most part, those openings were of low quality.

The 10th attempt was a successful one. Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall’s floated ball released Vitalii Mykolenko on the left, who laid the ball on a plate for Barry to sweep in a tidy finish.

There was a feeling the floodgates might open after that, but they didn’t, so when the second half began, Preston had the bit between their teeth, which the crowd sensed.

However, Barry’s second just before the hour made the comeback less likely, and his simple finish to complete his hat-trick essentially secured Everton’s progression with 20 minutes to play.

There was time for Brennan Johnson to add shine to the result, with the Welshman – who joined from Crystal Palace earlier this month – netting his first goal since November 2025 to make it 4-0.

The key moments from Deepdale…

• 25: GOAL! After nine previous attempts, Barry finishes off a slick move to put Everton in front.
• 39: CHANCE! Merlin Rohl gifts Preston a chance when he misjudges a bounce, allowing Delano Burgzorg to pull the ball back to Leo Leroy, who fires over from a promising position.
• 45: SAVE! Great stop from North End debutant Lee Nicholls, who denies Tyler Dibling at his near post.
• 47: BLOCK! James Tarkowski sticks a foot in to brilliantly turn away Delano Burgzorg’s shot as Preston chase an equaliser.
• 59: GOAL! Iliman Ndiaye tees up Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, whose cross is pushed straight into the path of Barry, who makes no mistake.
• 65: SAVE! Jordan Pickford makes his only significant save of the night to keep out a sweetly-struck overhead kick from Callum Lang.
• 70: GOAL! Dewsbury-Hall finds substitute Johnson, who gains a yard on Lewis Gibson and squares for Barry, who sweeps in to complete his hat-trick.
• 72: GOAL! Barry turns provider, laying a beautiful ball off for Johnson, who arrives in a similar position, but this time goes alone to add the gloss.

Heckingbottom: The second goal changed the game

Preston‘s Paul Heckingbottom speaking on Sky Sports Football:

“It’s just frustrating we were going to make the subs and they scored the (second) goal as we had them all lined up. It just changed the game. The goals after that were disappointing

“We were playing against top opposition, we know that, but one or two things, fundamentally, don’t help you keep clean sheets anyway. It doesn’t matter who you are playing against.

“Because of where we are at the minute, it’s hard to take the pressure off the defenders as we’ve not got attacking changes. We’ve got defenders on the bench, a couple more midfielders, wing-backs and some young boys. That’s where we’re at; we need attacking changes so we can keep the pressure on. And that’s a problem for us at the minute.”

Moyes discusses progression, Barry and Johnson

Everton‘s David Moyes speaking on Sky Sports Football:

“It ended up being a little bit more comfortable than I thought it might have been before the game, but it’s a really good result for us.

“I thought we played well at times and our football was quite good, but we need to finish things off a bit better in the first half than we did, but I’m really pleased we scored four goals.”

On Thierno Barry: “I told him [at the end of last season] he has to do a lot better than he did before. That’s it. We want centre-forwards to score goals. I don’t think it’s easy for anybody coming to the Premier League in their first season, especially centre-forwards. He’ll learn a lot more, he’ll see a lot more and he’s come in with a much better attitude generally, so whoever’s working with him is doing a good job.”

On Brennan Johnson: “We want to find what he did at Tottenham when he was scoring all those goals. His assist tonight was brilliant and his finish as well. People who’ve watched Brennan over the years will tell you that looks a bit more like him. We don’t want to bring him on too quick, but he’s done well tonight.”