Alan Shearer, Roy Keane and Daniel Sturridge back Ipswich Town striker Liam Delap to make Thomas Tuchel’s first England squad for World Cup qualifiers

Three footballer-turned-pundits have joined the growing list of people to heap praise on Ipswich Town striker Liam Delap.

In what is the 21-year-old’s debut season in the Premier League following his £15m switch from Manchester City during the summer, Delap has scored eight of the Tractor Boys’ 20 goals –including one from the penalty spot on Sunday in the 2-2 draw at Fulham.

And there is a growing clamour for the forward to be included in Thomas Tuchel’s first England squad when the Three Lions begin their World Cup qualifying campaign in March against Albania and Latvia.

Speaking on BBC’s Match Of The Day 2, England’s joint seventh leading goalscorer of all time – Alan Shearer – was adamant that the son of ex-Republic of Ireland international Rory Delap has to be in the German’s thinking.

“You know, as a centre-forward I always said to myself, you have to be aggressive,” said Shearer, who scored 30 goals for his country.

“You also have to come off the pitch saying to yourself ‘have I given the centre-halves a really tough afternoon?’ There’s no doubt about it so many times he can say ‘yes’.

“He’s got eight goals this season and Ipswich have only scored 20 themselves, so that tells you how impressive he’s actually been.

“He’s a really, really confident young footballer, who is only going to get better.

“We’re not blessed in that position with English strikers and there’s no doubt that Thomas Tuchel will be having a right good look at him.”

Meanwhile, Daniel Sturridge has also backed Delap to force his way into the senior international set-up.

“He’s a very, very exciting footballer – and for England as well moving forward,” Sturridge, who scored eight goals from his 26 England caps, told Sky Sports. “We’re talking about a guy who has pace, power and he can finish as well.

“As this season has continued to go on, he’s grown in confidence. He likes the contact and he’s got the technical ability in one-on-one situations.

“His finishing ability and what he brings to the table for this team is why they are able to get results and why they are picking up results.”

Former Ipswich manager Roy Keane was in the studio alongside Sturridge and he has also been impressed by Delap’s performances this season.

Keane, who was in charge of the Suffolk side between 2009 and 2011, believes that the forward’s presence gives Ipswich ‘a great chance’ of retaining their Premier League status.

“He’s aggressive, I like that. He likes a bit of argy-bargy with people. He likes to knock people around,” said Keane.

“He’s a goalscorer and when you look at the teams towards the bottom and any team that gets promoted, the biggest challenge is can you get your goals? He’ll give them a great chance and without him they’d be in huge trouble. Put it this way, the other teams down there would take him, of course.”

Prior to the draw at Fulham, boss Kieran McKenna dismissed any chance of the club selling Delap during this month’s transfer window.