Man Utd have secret weapon to complete £30m striker deal in June - opinion

Ipswich Town striker Liam Delap is one of the options on the shortlist for Manchester United ahead of what promises to be a busy summer of incomings and outgoings at Old Trafford.

It was initially revealed Delap had a £40 million release clause in his contract but he will be available for just £30 million this summer due to a relegation release clause written into his existing deal at Portman Road.

Many clubs including United are naturally interested in the forward, who has netted an impressive 12 goals in 34 appearances in his debut top-flight campaign at the age of 22.

Delap is in the top 12 goal scorers in the division while playing for a team that has scored just 35 goals in 35 matches. He’s scored more than a third of his team’s goals and his overall output when playing for such a struggling side becomes even more impressive when factoring that he has four more league goals than Bruno Fernandes, double the amount of both Alejandro Garnacho and Marcus Rashford - and nearly double that of Rasmus Hoijlund and Joshua Zirkzee put together in the league.

Liam Delap’s career so far

Delap, son of former Stoke City long-ball specialist Rory, has impressive physicality, aerial prowess and the ability to cause established Premier League defenders all kinds of problems.

The young forward arrived at Ipswich from Manchester City but spent most of his youth career at Derby County before joining Pep Guardiola’s men at 17.

Delap only ever played twice for City and never got the chance to play for the Sky Blues in the Premier League. He showed plenty of promise during his time with the club’s academy by scoring 35 in 36 matches at Under-23 level and also had spells at Preston, Stoke City and Hull City before earning a £20m move to Ipswich.

At Portman Road, he’s been an instant hit with fans and has been the main standout performer in an otherwise grim return to the Premier League after a 22-year hiatus from England’s top-flight.

The secret weapon that could help Man Utd seal Liam Delap transfer

Plenty of clubs, including Newcastle United, Chelsea and Everton have been credited with interest in Liam Delap heading into the summer window, which means the Red Devils may need to do something different than simply meet his release clause if they are to win the race. One potential option could be offloading one of their up and coming talents, even if it is just on loan for one season.

Ruben Amorim has shown a willingness to use youth throughout his early months at Old Trafford, and one star that has benefited from this is Chido Obi Martin. The 17-year-old Dane, who has scored 14 goals in 14 games at various age groups this season, has made seven senior appearances across all competitions this term and recently made history by becoming the team’s youngest ever starter in a top-flight game.

Obi needs first team football to harness his potential and a £30m move for Delap, with the teen going out on loan to Portman Road as part of the deal could be the perfect way to unleash the forward’s full potential while also filling a key void in Kieran McKenna’s side for next term.

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