Liam Delap | £30m release clause?

[dinostar77]

A flat track bully. That's why I said a Lukaku type of a player. We should absolutely avoid these types of players who are not technical enough to adjust their game once they come against a physically stronger defenders. Just watch his game against us, he wasted the entire game wrestling Maguire and failed miserably.

Interesting analysis, has all the required attributes to lead Utd forward line.

 

[Raoul]

This argument becomes honestly really lame. Have you ever watched the player. Delap is a physical monster who can hold the ball up, carry the ball forward in channels and through the middle and constantly harras midfielders and win second balls and headers. Hojlund has fraction of that ability. So stop comparing their goalscoring record for once. We would be getting a complete striker who can work on his finishing like Isaak did but will instantly make our game tic.

Have we seen a ball out to a striker who could hold it up in the front and start attack ever this season? it's very rare and it's when Zirkzee is dropping very deep. He's okay at that, but Delap is much better. We are struggling to win anysecond ball or header in the middle of the park for the same reason, we have only two boys who can't win a challenge in Zirkzee and Hojlund, so we relly a lot on playing through the wings, which makes us play very one dimensional.


People also forget Delap was a great city academy product who could not break through for obvious reasons, but he can do a Palmer or Heaven if he gets a chance in an attacking team..

Would still prefer Sesko or Gyokeres but for the money and age in Gyokeres case it's really smart business and helps to build our squad faster for the next season. Less risk if things dont work out.

I've watched enough to know the hype exceeds the eye test. And to be clear, I'm not against buying a player like Delap as long as its in addition to an experienced striker - not instead of one. And frankly, 80% of the hype Delap receives wouldn't exist if he wasn't English/Irish.

Gyokeres should be the primary target and I don't suspect money will be an issue given his relationship. with Amorim, especially given the availability of CL money should we qualify

 

[Gandalf]

I've watched enough to know the hype exceeds the eye test. And to be clear, I'm not against buying a player like Delap as long as its in addition to an experienced striker - not instead of one. And frankly, 80% of the hype Delap receives wouldn't exist if he wasn't English/Irish.

Gyokeres should be the primary target and I don't suspect money will be an issue given his relationship. with Amorim, especially given the availability of CL money should we qualify

I don't disagree but with the paucity of striking options and the number of clubs competing for their services I cannot imagine any club will be signing two forwards and so it becomes a case of either or and even then we could be turned down. Delap seems to be the target we are pursuing and there seems little indication that we even want to make an offer for Gyokeres, I am not entirely sure that it is a race I want to win but I fear that if we are rejected we may already be too late to pivot to another target.

 

[EtH]

Agreed. Which is why it strains credulity that we would suddenly see a massive improvement by swapping them. If we're serious about challenging in the league and CL next year, we will require players who are comparably as good, if not better than those of our main opponents.

CL or not we’re in a tight spot considering our finances and the state of the squad at the moment so it is high time we got a bit more creative with our transfers. The thin striker market also doesn’t help especially when you consider some of the clubs who will be in that market this summer. Some punts might be in order but we have to be smart about it and hedge our bets.

I would much rather we spend the proposed Delap money on the ex-Arsenal kid Mika Biereth from Monaco who if nothing else looks to be a natural goal scorer and technically gifted player. Might seem an odd move considering it would be his third move in three windows. But that’s the sort of conviction we need in identifying and signing young players in particular.

But just the same as if we signed Delap it’d be mad to go into the season with Biereth as our first choice striker. The obvious solution is to come up with the funds to bring a budget option like Schick or David in as well. But this is really a pretty risky prospect considering the former’s age/injury record and the latter’s lack of productivity from open play in France. We need to get better as you say but the options are clearly limited so then we must get creative.

I look at something like a loan swap deal for Vlahović with Højlund going the other way. Could end up with a rejuvenated player like Forest did with Milenković this season and build some value back up in Rasmus in the process same as Antony et al this season. At the very least even if he was mediocre by his standards Vlahović would be an improvement. Some might disagree on the particular player(s) but I think this is the sort of outside the box thinking we need to get better in our current situation.

 

[Dazzmondo]

If we're not going for Osimhen due to his wage demands, I still don't see any justifiable reason why we would be targeting Delap over Jonathan David, Gyokeres or even Pavlidis or Retegui.

 

[FerociousCorgis]

If we're not going for Osimhen due to his wage demands, I still don't see any justifiable reason why we would be targeting Delap over Jonathan David, Gyokeres or even Pavlidis or Retegui.

really. You cant see ANY justifiable reason? You act like the other options are some clear cut no brainer world class players. This isn't like we are comparing kane when he moved on to bayern vs a current delap. All the targets that are available this summer window have positives and negatives, and would argue that none of them are "sure things". Delap has his positives as well as negatives.

 

[elmo]

If we're not going for Osimhen due to his wage demands, I still don't see any justifiable reason why we would be targeting Delap over Jonathan David, Gyokeres or even Pavlidis or Retegui.

Because the club can’t risk going into next season with yet another striker who’s not proven in the league.

 

[Dazzmondo]

Because the club can’t risk going into next season with yet another striker who’s not proven in the league.

Liam Delap isn't proven in the league either. One season where he's been good as the only goal threat in a terrible team. He has 12 goals. It's solid but he's not even come close to proving he's good enough to lead the line for Utd.

 

[Dazzmondo]

really. You cant see ANY justifiable reason? You act like the other options are some clear cut no brainer world class players. This isn't like we are comparing kane when he moved on to bayern vs a current delap. All the targets that are available this summer window have positives and negatives, and would argue that none of them are "sure things". Delap has his positives as well as negatives.

Maybe not sure things, but Gyokeres, David and Pavlidis have scored consistently for multiple seasons now. Retegui would be more of a risk as this is really his breakout season, so I would probably be a bit more wary there. I've been suggesting David for years and I still have no idea why we didn't go for him ages ago. He would have done a far better job than Hojlund if we had signed him then imo and for about 1/7th the cost.

 

[Raoul]

CL or not we’re in a tight spot considering our finances and the state of the squad at the moment so it is high time we got a bit more creative with our transfers. The thin striker market also doesn’t help especially when you consider some of the clubs who will be in that market this summer. Some punts might be in order but we have to be smart about it and hedge our bets.

I would much rather we spend the proposed Delap money on the ex-Arsenal kid Mika Biereth from Monaco who if nothing else looks to be a natural goal scorer and technically gifted player. Might seem an odd move considering it would be his third move in three windows. But that’s the sort of conviction we need in identifying and signing young players in particular.

But just the same as if we signed Delap it’d be mad to go into the season with Biereth as our first choice striker. The obvious solution is to come up with the funds to bring a budget option like Schick or David in as well. But this is really a pretty risky prospect considering the former’s age/injury record and the latter’s lack of productivity from open play in France. We need to get better as you say but the options are clearly limited so then we must get creative.

I look at something like a loan swap deal for Vlahović with Højlund going the other way. Could end up with a rejuvenated player like Forest did with Milenković this season and build some value back up in Rasmus in the process same as Antony et al this season. At the very least even if he was mediocre by his standards Vlahović would be an improvement. Some might disagree on the particular player(s) but I think this is the sort of outside the box thinking we need to get better in our current situation.

If you've followed Ornstein's recent reporting, we're not in as tight a spot as previously feared. We already have enough for two players like Delap and Cunha without the need for sales, and that's before the up to £85m extra we will have for CL qualification and subsequent earnings from each CL match at OT. Therefore the narrative that we are in some sort of hopeless austerity spiral, and as such can only buy players the calibre of Delap is by all accounts, not correct.

 

[Raoul]

I don't disagree but with the paucity of striking options and the number of clubs competing for their services I cannot imagine any club will be signing two forwards and so it becomes a case of either or and even then we could be turned down. Delap seems to be the target we are pursuing and there seems little indication that we even want to make an offer for Gyokeres, I am not entirely sure that it is a race I want to win but I fear that if we are rejected we may already be too late to pivot to another target.

I don't believe there's a shortage of available experienced strikers available. See the striker transfer poll thread for the menu of options, a number of which are likely to move to new clubs this summer.

 

[Gandalf]

I don't believe there's a shortage of available experienced strikers available. See the striker transfer poll thread for the menu of options, a number of which are likely to move to new clubs this summer.

I have seen it but there are a number of names on there that I would expect to perform at a lower level than Delap and even then not all will be moving. Arsenal have to sign a striker, Liverpool are looking to replace Nunez, Villa want a striker, Chelsea want a striker, Newcastle want a striker and the list goes on and that is before we even consider the fact that there are other leagues out there and not everybody wants PL football, David being a case in point.

Take a quick look at the scoring charts for the top leagues in Europe and it is grim reading. We have pages and pages of people wanting a striker that guarantees 20+ goals and the truth is there are almost zero strikers out there doing that in what most of us consider to be weaker leagues. The two consistent names, neither of whom are sure things, are Gyokeres and Osimhen. We are not credibly linked to the former and have openly confirmed we are not interested in the latter. The other names likely to be on the move come with significantly more risk and due to either cost or age profile fall outside the scope of players that INEOS has stated we are looking for.

I hope it is not us but I am willing to bet that several of the clubs that right now are desperate to sign a striker for next season will end up with nothing or at best a speculative punt.

 

[EtH]

If you've followed Ornstein's recent reporting, we're not in as tight a spot as previously feared. We already have enough for two players like Delap and Cunha without the need for sales, and that's before the up to £85m extra we will have for CL qualification and subsequent earnings from each CL match at OT. Therefore the narrative that we are in some sort of hopeless austerity spiral, and as such can only buy players the calibre of Delap is by all accounts, not correct.

Yes but we are still up against it with PSR and need players all over the pitch. With that in mind I’m not sure spending £50m on any one player makes sense at the moment.

 

[Raoul]

Yes but we are still up against it with PSR and need players all over the pitch. With that in mind I’m not sure spending £50m on any one player makes sense at the moment.

Selling Rashford will probably put a massive dent in any PSR concerns imo. As for spending 50m, it shouldn't be a concerns if its the right player. If we do, it will probably be players like Gyokeres and Cunha. The right balance this summer for me will be Gyokeres (55m), Cunha (50m), Mastantuno (35m), Ederson (40m), Kana-Biyik (3m), Diego Leon (3m - already paid in winter window). That would put us in the £180m range, which would be offset by the sales of Rashford, Sancho, Antony, Hojlund, possible sell on fees from Greenwood and Carreras, + an addition £14m by getting Eriksen and Lindelof's wages off the book. The inbound money could quickly add up to about 100-130m depending on how many players we clear out this summer.

 

[elmo]

Selling Rashford will probably put a massive dent in any PSR concerns imo. As for spending 50m, it shouldn't be a concerns if its the right player. If we do, it will probably be players like Gyokeres and Cunha. The right balance this summer for me will be Gyokeres (55m), Cunha (50m), Mastantuno (35m), Ederson (40m), Kana-Biyik (3m), Diego Leon (3m - already paid in winter window). That would put us in the £180m range, which would be offset by the sales of Rashford, Sancho, Antony, Hojlund, possible sell on fees from Greenwood and Carreras, + an addition £14m by getting Eriksen and Lindelof's wages off the book. The inbound money could quickly add up to about 100-130m depending on how many players we clear out this summer.

We’ll need to wait till we actually sell the likes of Rashford and Sancho first.

 

[EtH]

We’ll need to wait till we actually sell the likes of Rashford and Sancho first.

They’ll both be back out on loan next season most likely. The wages are simply too high to expect any significant amount from selling either. Even if we manage to get rid we will have to subsidize wages to do so.

 

[Raoul]

We’ll need to wait till we actually sell the likes of Rashford and Sancho first.

Indeed. Even if we only sell one, that will make a massive dent in both PSR and our ability to buy more players beyond the Cunha + striker.

 

[EtH]

Selling Rashford will probably put a massive dent in any PSR concerns imo. As for spending 50m, it shouldn't be a concerns if its the right player. If we do, it will probably be players like Gyokeres and Cunha. The right balance this summer for me will be Gyokeres (55m), Cunha (50m), Mastantuno (35m), Ederson (40m), Kana-Biyik (3m), Diego Leon (3m - already paid in winter window). That would put us in the £180m range, which would be offset by the sales of Rashford, Sancho, Antony, Hojlund, possible sell on fees from Greenwood and Carreras, + an addition £14m by getting Eriksen and Lindelof's wages off the book. The inbound money could quickly add up to about 100-130m depending on how many players we clear out this summer.

Optimistic I think. Maybe Chelsea take Sancho because who can explain anything that Chelsea does but I don’t see Rashford going anywhere unless it’s another subsidized loan. You are right that we should have a good chunk of wages coming off the books though. And getting a good fee for Antony would help as well. But selling Højlund would actually hurt us from a PSR standpoint as a)his stock is so low we’d take a massive loss on him and b)we would be locking in that loss on him with a sale. Better to loan him as I said and hope he pushes that stock back up like Antony and Betis this season.

As for spunking £50m+ on a player sure I agree it’s warranted at times but I just don’t see any of those players available this summer. In our position such an outlay should be reserved only for a can’t miss player ala Kane or a generational young talent like Cherki who ironically would cost half of Cunha’s release clause or possibly less due to his contract situation. Also I think it was @Fortitude who pointed out just how shite our signings for £50m and above have been historically. Spending that amount of money doesn’t guarantee anything, especially from the Portuguese league.

 

[Gandalf]

Indeed. Even if we only sell one, that will make a massive dent in both PSR and our ability to buy more players beyond the Cunha + striker.

One caveat to that is that we know we have the 90M earmarked for Cunha and Delap as it was confirmed by Ornstein who is as reliable as we are likely to find. The comment about further incomings being dependent on player sales did not clarify what percentage of funds raised would be available to reinvest though. Typically clubs do not plough all transfer revenue back into sales so if you project 75M raised through sales for example, that might only result in the club increasing the transfer budget by 25M. We know INEOS are looking to tighten the purse strings so I would expect austerity until they prove us wrong.

 

[croadyman]

Considering who we struggle against the most under Amorim, a flat track bully isn't all that bad

So who do you feel fits what we need then?

 

[AltiUn]

I’m deeply concerned by this signing, I know a loan spell isn’t the be all and end all but he was horrendous at Preston and this is really his first actual quality season, just for reference Alvaro was there the same season as Delap and had no trouble showing his quality

North End had 3 young strikers on loan that season and there was no question Delap was the worst, being beaten out by Tom Cannon and Troy Parrott

 

[croadyman]

I’m deeply concerned by this signing, I know a loan spell isn’t the be all and end all but he was horrendous at Preston and this is really his first actual quality season, just for reference Alvaro was there the same season as Delap and had no trouble showing his quality

North End had 3 young strikers on loan that season and there was no question Delap was the worst, being beaten out by Tom Cannon and Troy Parrott

He may still end up at Chelsea, certainly not going to judge him on an unsuccessful loan at Preston though

 

[SilentWitness]

Moyes has said we are interested in him but acknowledged it would be hard to sign him if the other teams reported were interested.

 

[golden_blunder]

I’m deeply concerned by this signing, I know a loan spell isn’t the be all and end all but he was horrendous at Preston and this is really his first actual quality season, just for reference Alvaro was there the same season as Delap and had no trouble showing his quality

North End had 3 young strikers on loan that season and there was no question Delap was the worst, being beaten out by Tom Cannon and Troy Parrott

And tell me, where are those players now?

Loan spells are useful for player aiding development nothing more. You would think that United fans would know that by now

 

[Cassidy]

I’m deeply concerned by this signing, I know a loan spell isn’t the be all and end all but he was horrendous at Preston and this is really his first actual quality season, just for reference Alvaro was there the same season as Delap and had no trouble showing his quality

North End had 3 young strikers on loan that season and there was no question Delap was the worst, being beaten out by Tom Cannon and Troy Parrott

A certain Harry Kane did do that well on loan either

 

[Cassidy]

Liam Delap isn't proven in the league either. One season where he's been good as the only goal threat in a terrible team. He has 12 goals. It's solid but he's not even come close to proving he's good enough to lead the line for Utd.

United finishing 14th and he has more goals that the United strikers combined. Probably has proved he is good enough for where we are at the moment to be fair

 

[EtH]

United finishing 14th and he has more goals that the United strikers combined. Probably has proved he is good enough for where we are at the moment to be fair

If we want to stay where we are he’s perfect.

 

[Cassidy]

If we want to stay where we are he’s perfect.

Yes signing a player who is better than both our current CFs will make us stagnant.

Or maybe he has shown he can score goals and we should sign him and bostler the rest of the squad/team so we can be better all round

Sell Hojlund if we can and also get in another CF with Delap

 

[EtH]

Yes signing a player who is better than both our current CFs will make us stagnant.

Or maybe he has shown he can score goals and we should sign him and bostler the rest of the squad/team so we can be better all round

Sell Hojlund if we can and also get in another CF with Delap

Replacing Højlund with Delap is the very definition of a sideways move.

 

[Prodigy24]

Don't want him anywhere near the club. Can't believe that he's the main attacking target for the summer.

 

[Cassidy]

Replacing Højlund with Delap is the very definition of a sideways move.

1) not its not. Delap is miles better watch football
2) read properly it says to replace Hojlund with another CF

 

[hellhunter]

1) not its not. Delap is miles better watch football
2) read properly it says to replace Hojlund with another CF

I don't think that's clear cut at all. But I agree that likely neither is the answer to our woes

 

[Cassidy]

I don't think that's clear cut at all. But I agree that likely neither is the answer to our woes

I think its obvious he is a better footballer (than even Hojlund last season) seriously its not even debatable

 

[hellhunter]

I think its obvious he is a better footballer (than even Hojlund last season) seriously its not even debatable

It boils down to if you think this season's version is the real Hojlund or last season's version. I know he had a nice streak last season, but there isn't much between 23/24 Hojlund and 24/25 Delap

 

[Trex]

It boils down to if you think this season's version is the real Hojlund or last season's version. I know he had a nice streak last season, but there isn't much between 23/24 Hojlund and 24/25 Delap

There is though, Delap general play is better.

 

[Cassidy]

It boils down to if you think this season's version is the real Hojlund or last season's version. I know he had a nice streak last season, but there isn't much between 23/24 Hojlund and 24/25 Delap

Yeah I disagree as I already said. Delap is a much better footballer than Hojlund even last season

 

[Dazzmondo]

United finishing 14th and he has more goals that the United strikers combined. Probably has proved he is good enough for where we are at the moment to be fair

Hojlund last season had almost identical non-penalty xg and xa involvement (9.2 vs Liam Delap's 9.4 currently) and finished with 10 league goals and 2 assists, compared to Delap's 12 goals (including penalties) and 2 assists. Delap has also played about 300 more minutes than Hojlund did last season already. I assume you wouldn't argue that Hojlund is good enough to be starting for us?

Delap as a backup for £30m would be ok, but if he's our starting striker next season it's extremly unlikely we'll see any major improvement in our goal tally (though Cunha will probably make a bigger impact).

You seem to be saying Delap is a better all-round player than Hojlund which I wouldn't disagree with, but I also think there are clearly far better all-round strikers on the market we should be targeting ahead of either of them. Feel free to take out whoever you think is unrealistic, but some potentially possible names that should be targeted ahead of Delap imo include - Isak, Gyokeres, Osimhen, Thuram, David, Ekitike, Pavlidis, Retegui and Sesko. After that, sure Delap is probably the next best option, but that's still a decent list of alternatives to target first imo.

 

[EtH]

1) not its not. Delap is miles better watch football
2) read properly it says to replace Hojlund with another CF

He is better at some things and worse at others. Uses his frame better and puts himself about sure but very lacking technically. Downright clumsy at times.

You said Delap was clearly better than our CF options. That’s just not the case.

 

[Cantona of Lagos]

Yeah I disagree as I already said. Delap is a much better footballer than Hojlund even last season

Last season Delap scored 8 goals in Championship while Hojlund scored more in the Premier League and Champions League. "Much better footballer" is a bit of a stretch, in my opinion. Neither are good enough to lead the line for us.

 

[Cassidy]

Hojlund last season had almost identical non-penalty xg and xa involvement (9.2 vs Liam Delap's 9.4 currently) and finished with 10 league goals and 2 assists, compared to Delap's 12 goals (including penalties) and 2 assists. Delap has also played about 300 more minutes than Hojlund did last season already. I assume you wouldn't argue that Hojlund is good enough to be starting for us?

Delap as a backup for £30m would be ok, but if he's our starting striker next season it's extremly unlikely we'll see any major improvement in our goal tally (though Cunha will probably make a bigger impact)

1) Hojlund played for a much better side with better players

2) Watching football instead of looking at stats would enlighten you to the fact Delap has a better first touch, is much better in the air, is a better dibbler, has better balance and core strength (does not fall over all the time trying to hold the ball up). All of this makes him a much better player then Hojlund