‘Liam Delap to jump at Ipswich exit to Man United over Chelsea’
Liam Delap is backed to accept a move to Manchester United “every day of the week” and is thought to be better suited to Ruben Amorim’s side than a Chelsea switch.
The 22-year-old has scored 12 times in his debut season in the Premier League, causing not only Manchester United and Chelsea to keep tabs on his progress, but the likes of European giants Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich as well.
It is believed that Delap’s release clause would be £30m in the likely event that Ipswich Town are relegated come the end of the season [BBC].
However, former Arsenal midfielder and Sky Sports pundit Paul Merson, believes that the young forward could favour a move to Manchester United as they are still “one of the biggest” club’s in the world and that Delap‘s style is more suited to Amorim’s system in comparison to Chelsea.
Manchester United still ‘one of the biggest’ club’s in the world
Speaking live on Sky Sports Soccer Saturday (1.28pm, April 12), Merson said: “In my opinion it’s still one of the biggest clubs in the world [Man United]. They’re not the biggest team in the world but one of the biggest clubs.
“If you’re talking about Delap, from Ipswich to Man United, you’d take that every day of the week.
“I would say [he suits Man United better than Chelsea] and I only say that because I go to Chelsea enough and teams just come and sit 10 behind [the ball] and he wants grass, he’s a willing runner, he makes runs, he takes pressure off the defence because he takes you up the pitch with his runs, and he’s willing and can knick a goal here and there.
“But I don’t see much between him and Hojlund. I like Hojlund, I think he’s a good player, but you’re only as good as the people that provide [for] you.
“You’ve got two wingers that never want to cross the ball, they always want to cut in and have a shot. You’ve got midfield players where all you’re relying on is Bruno Fernandes to give you the ball, no one else is going to give you it.
“So whoever plays up front for Man United has got a graveyard shift. It’s a hard job.”
| Delap overall stats for Ipswich 24/25 |
| Games – 33 |
| Goals – 12 |
| Assists – 2 |
Liam Delap to have multiple offers for a move away from Ipswich this summer
Football Insider Verdict
It’s fair to say that Delap is best suited to a system which revolves around counter-attacking, with his best qualities coming from his willingness to run in behind.
The forward’s best moments have come when Ipswich have sat deep before catching the opposition in the transition, which is more similar to Manchester United’s philosophy than Enzo Maresca‘s Chelsea.
At a reduced fee of £30m, you would be hard pushed to find another young forward with the same amount of potential for such little financial outlay.
Despite his best football coming on the break, there is little to suggest that Delap would not be able to adapt to a more possession-based, free-flowing style, with the striker often dropping deep to link the play between midfield and attack this term.
One aspect which is clear about Delap‘s future, however, is that he will not be short of offers when the transfer window opens in June.